Effect of Pre-Heating Resin Composite and Light-Curing Units on Monomer Conversion

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of pre-heating resin composite photo-cured with light-curing units (LCU) by FT-IR. Twenty specimens were made in a metallic mold (4 mm diameter x 2 mm thick) from composite resin-Tetric Ceram (R) (Ivoclar/Vivadent) at room temperature (25 degrees C) and pre heated to 37, 54, and 60 degrees C. The specimens were cured with halogen curing light (QTH) and light emitted by diodes (LED) during 40 s. Then, the specimens were pulverized, pressed with KBr and analyzed with FT-IR. The data were submitted to statistical analysis of variance and Kruskal-Wallis test. Study data showed no statistically significant difference to the degree of conversion for the different light curing units (QTH and LED) (p > 0.05). With the increase of temperature there was significant increase in the degree of conversion (p < 0.05). In this study were not found evidence that the light curing unit and temperature influenced the degree of conversion.

The effect of different light-curing units on tensile strength and microhardness of a composite resin

The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of different light-curing units on the tensile bond strength and microhardness of a composite resin (Filtek Z250 - 3M/ESPE). Conventional halogen (Curing Light 2500 - 3M/ESPE; CL) and two blue light emitting diode curing units (Ultraled - Dabi/Atlante; UL; Ultrablue IS - DMC; UB3 and UB6) were selected for this study. Different light intensities (670, 130, 300, and 600 mW/cm2, respectively) and different curing times (20s, 40s and 60s) were evaluated. Knoop microhardness test was performed in the area corresponding to the fractured region of the specimen. A total of 12 groups (n=10) were established and the specimens were prepared using a stainless steel mold composed by two similar parts that contained a cone-shaped hole with two diameters (8.0 mm and 5.0 mm) and thickness of 1.0 mm. Next, the specimens were loaded in tensile strength until fracture in a universal testing machine at a crosshead speed of 0.5 mm/min and a 50 kg load cell. For the microhardness test, the same matrix was used to fabricate the specimens (12 groups; n=5). Microhardness was determined on the surfaces that were not exposed to the light source, using a Shimadzu HMV-2 Microhardness Tester at a static load of 50 g for 30 seconds. Data were analyzed statistically by two-way ANOVA and Tukey's test (p<0.05). Regarding the individual performance of the light-curing units, there was similarity in tensile strength with 20-s and 40-s exposure times and higher tensile strength when a 60-s light-activation time was used. Regarding microhardness, the halogen lamp had higher results when compared to the LED units. For all light-curing units, the variation of light-exposure time did not affect composite microhardness. However, lower irradiances needed longer light-activation times to produce similar effect as that obtained with high-irradiance light-curing sources.

Effect of pre-heating resin composite and light-curing units on monomer conversion

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of pre-heating resin composite photo-cured with light-curing units (LCU) by FT-IR. Twenty specimens were made in a metallic mold (4 mm diameter × 2 mm thick) from composite resin-Tetric Ceram® (Ivoclar/Vivadent) at room temperature (25°C) and pre-heated to 37, 54, and 60°C. The specimens were cured with halogen curing light (QTH) and light emitted by diodes (LED) during 40 s. Then, the specimens were pulverized, pressed with KBr and analyzed with FT-IR. The data were submitted to statistical analysis of variance and Kruskal-Wallis test. Study data showed no statistically significant difference to the degree of conversion for the different light curing units (QTH and LED) (p > 0.05). With the increase of temperature there was significant increase in the degree of conversion (p < 0.05). In this study were not found evidence that the light curing unit and temperature influenced the degree of conversion. © 2010 Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.

Effect of light curing modes on mechanical properties of direct and indirect composites

Objective. To evaluate the degree of conversion (DC), flexural strength (FS) and Knoop microhardness (KHN) of direct and indirect composite resins polymerized with different curing systems. Materials and methods. Specimens of direct (Z250, 3M/Espe) and indirect (Sinfony, 3M/Espe) restorative materials were made and polymerized using two light curing units: XL2500 (3M/Espe) and Visio system (3M/Espe). Absorption spectra of both composites were obtained on a FTIR spectrometer in order to calculate the DC. FS was evaluated in a universal testing machine and surface microhardness was performed in a microhardness tester (50gf/15s). DC, FS and KHN data were submitted to two-way ANOVA and Tukey's test (α = 0.05). Results. Z250 showed higher DC, FS and KHN compared with Sinfony when the polymerization was carried out with XL2500 (p < 0.05). However, there is no statistical difference in DC between the materials when Visio was used (p > 0.05). Visio showed higher DC and KHN for Z250 and Sinfony than the values obtained using XL2500 light curing (p < 0.05). For FS, no significant difference between curing units was found (p > 0.05). Conclusion. Even though the Visio system could increase DC and KHN for some direct and indirect composites, compared with the conventional halogen curing unit, a high number of monomers did not undergo conversion during the polymerization. © 2013 Informa Healthcare.

Effect of different light-curing techniques on hardness of a microhybrid dental composite resin

Coordenação de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES)

Composite resin color stability: influence of light sources and immersion media

Objective: This study evaluated the influence of light sources and immersion media on the color stability of a nanofilled composite resin. Material and Methods: Conventional halogen, high-power-density halogen and high-power-density light-emitting diode (LED) units were used. There were 4 immersion media: coffee, tea, Coke (R) and artificial saliva. A total of 180 specimens (10 mm x 2 mm) were prepared, immersed in artificial saliva for 24 h at 37 +/- 1 degrees C, and had their initial color measured with a spectrophotometer according to the CIELab system. Then, the specimens were immersed in the 4 media during 60 days. Data from the color change and luminosity were collected and subjected to statistical analysis by the Kruskall-Wallis test (p<0.05). For immersion time, the data were subjected to two-way ANOVA test and Fisher's test (p<0.05). Results: High-power-density LED (Delta E=1.91) promoted similar color stability of the composite resin to that of the tested halogen curing units (Jet Lite 4000 plus - Delta E=2.05; XL 3000 - Delta E=2.28). Coffee (Delta E=8.40; Delta L=-5.21) showed the highest influence on color stability of the studied composite resin. Conclusion: There was no significant difference in color stability regardless of the light sources, and coffee was the immersion medium that promoted the highest color changes on the tested composite resin.

Influência da fonte de luz na estabilidade de cor de resina composta. Efeito dos meios e tempos de imersão

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Composite resin color stability: influence of light sources and immersion media

This study evaluated the influence of light sources and immersion media on the color stability of a nanofilled composite resin. Conventional halogen, high-power-density halogen and high-power-density light-emitting diode (LED) units were used. There were 4 immersion media: coffee, tea, Coke® and artificial saliva. A total of 180 specimens (10 mm x 2 mm) were prepared, immersed in artificial saliva for 24 h at 37±1ºC, and had their initial color measured with a spectrophotometer according to the CIELab system. Then, the specimens were immersed in the 4 media during 60 days. Data from the color change and luminosity were collected and subjected to statistical analysis by the Kruskall-Wallis test (p<0.05). For immersion time, the data were subjected to two-way ANOVA test and Fisher's test (p<0.05). High-power-density LED (ΔE=1.91) promoted similar color stability of the composite resin to that of the tested halogen curing units (Jet Lite 4000 plus--ΔE=2.05; XL 3000--ΔE=2.28). Coffee (ΔE=8.40; ΔL=-5.21) showed the highest influence on color stability of the studied composite resin. There was no significant difference in color stability regardless of the light sources, and coffee was the immersion medium that promoted the highest color changes on the tested composite resin.

Composite resin color stability: influence of light sources and immersion media

This study evaluated the influence of light sources and immersion media on the color stability of a nanofilled composite resin. Conventional halogen, high-power-density halogen and high-power-density light-emitting diode (LED) units were used. There were 4 immersion media: coffee, tea, Coke® and artificial saliva. A total of 180 specimens (10 mm x 2 mm) were prepared, immersed in artificial saliva for 24 h at 37±1ºC, and had their initial color measured with a spectrophotometer according to the CIELab system. Then, the specimens were immersed in the 4 media during 60 days. Data from the color change and luminosity were collected and subjected to statistical analysis by the Kruskall-Wallis test (p<0.05). For immersion time, the data were subjected to two-way ANOVA test and Fisher's test (p<0.05). High-power-density LED (ΔE=1.91) promoted similar color stability of the composite resin to that of the tested halogen curing units (Jet Lite 4000 plus--ΔE=2.05; XL 3000--ΔE=2.28). Coffee (ΔE=8.40; ΔL=-5.21) showed the highest influence on color stability of the studied composite resin. There was no significant difference in color stability regardless of the light sources, and coffee was the immersion medium that promoted the highest color changes on the tested composite resin.

Effect of different light sources on degree of conversion, hardness and plasticization of a composite

Clinical performance of composite resins depends largely on their mechanical properties,and those are influenced by several factors,such as the light-curing mode. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of different light sources on degree of conversion(DC), Knoop hardness(KHN) and plasticization(P) of a composite resin. Disc-shaped specimens (5 x 2 mm) of Esthet-X(Dentsply) methacrylate-based microhybrid composite were light-cured using quartz-tungsten-halogen (QTH) Optilight Plus(Gnatus) or light-emitting diode(LED) Ultraled(Dabi Atlante) curing units at 400 and 340 mW/cm2 of irradiance, respectively. After 24 h, absorption spectra of composite were obtained using Nexus 670(Nicolet)FT-IR spectrometer in order to calculate the DC.The KHN was measured in the HMV-2000(Shimadzu) microhardness tester under 50 g loads for 15 s, and P was evaluated by percentage reductio of hardness after 24 h of alcohol storage. Data were subjected to t-Student test(alpha=0.05).QTH device showed lower P and higher KHN$ than LED (p<0.05), and no difference between the light-curing units was found for DC (p>0.05). The halogen-curing unit with higher irradiance promoted higher KHN and lower softening in alcohol than LED.

Curing depth of composite resin light cured by LED and halogen light-curing units

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the polymerization effectiveness of a composite resin (Z-250) utilizing microhardness testing. In total, 80 samples with thicknesses of 2 and 4 mm were made, which were photoactivated by a conventional halogen light-curing unit, and light-curing units based on LED. The samples were stored in water distilled for 24 h at 37C. The Vickers microhardness was performed by the MMT-3 microhardness tester. The microhardness means obtained were as follows: G1, 72.88; G2, 69.35; G3, 67.66; G4, 69.71; G5, 70.95; G6, 75.19; G7, 72.96; and G8, 71.62. The data were submitted to an analysis of variance (ANOVA's test), adopting a significance level of 5%. The results showed that, in general, there were no statistical differences between the halogen and LED light-curing units used with the same parameters.

Curing capability of halogen and LED light curing units in deep class II cavities in extracted human molars

Class II cavities were prepared in extracted lower molars filled and cured in three 2-mm increments using a metal matrix. Three composites (Spectrum TPH A4, Ceram X mono M7 and Tetric Ceram A4) were cured with both the SmartLite PS LED LCU and the Spectrum 800 continuous cure halogen LCU using curing cycles of 10, 20 and 40 seconds. Each increment was cured before adding the next. After a seven-day incubation period, the composite specimens were removed from the teeth, embedded in self-curing resin and ground to half the orofacial width. Knoop microhardness was determined 100, 200, 500, 1000, 1500, 2500, 3500, 4500 and 5500 microm from the occlusal surface at a distance of 150 microm and 1000 microm from the metal matrix. The total degree of polymerization of a composite specimen for any given curing time and curing light was determined by calculating the area under the hardness curve. Hardness values 150 microm from the metal matrix never reached maximum values and were generally lower than those 1000 microm from the matrix. The hardest composite was usually encountered between 200 microm and 1000 microm from the occlusal surface. For every composite-curing time combination, there was an increase in microhardness at the top of each increment (measurements at 500, 2500 and 4500 microm) and a decrease towards the bottom of each increment (measurements at 1500, 3500 and 5500 microm). Longer curing times were usually combined with harder composite samples. Spectrum TPH composite was the only composite showing a satisfactory degree of polymerization for all three curing times and both LCUs. Multiple linear regression showed that only the curing time (p < 0.001) and composite material (p < 0.001) had a significant association with the degree of polymerization. The degree of polymerization achieved by the LED LCU was not significantly different from that achieved by the halogen LCU (p = 0.54).

Influence of pre-heat treatment and different light-curing units on Vickers hardness of a microhybrid composite resin

The aim of this study was to evaluate the hardness of a dental composite resin submitted to temperature changes before photo-activation with two light-curing unite (LCUs). Five samples (4 mm in diameter and 2 mm in thickness) for each group were made with pre-cure temperatures of 37, 54, and 60A degrees C. The samples were photo-activated with a conventional quartz-tungsten-halogen (QTH) and blue LED LCUs during 40 s. The hardness Vickers test (VHN) was performed on the top and bottom surfaces of the samples. According to the interaction between light-curing unit and different pre-heating temperatures of composite resin, only the light-curing unit provided influences on the mean values of initial Vickers hardness. The light-curing unit based on blue LED showed hardness mean values more homogeneous between the top and bottom surfaces. The hardness mean values were not statistically significant difference for the pre-cure temperature used. According to these results, the pre-heating of the composite resin provide no influence on Vickers hardness mean values, however the blue LED showed a cure more homogeneous than QTH LCU.

Changes in the temperature of a dental light-cured composite resin by different light-curing units

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the temperature increase during the polymerization process through the use of three different light-curing units with different irradiation times. One argon laser (Innova, Coherent), one halogen (Optilight 501, Demetron), and one blue LED (LEC 1000, MM Optics) LCU with 500 mW/cm(2) during 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and 60 s of irradiation times were used in this study. The composite resin used was a microhybrid Filtek Z-250 (3M/ESPE) at color A(2). The samples were made in a metallic mold 2 mm in thickness and 4 mm in diameter and previously light-cured during 40 s. A thermocouple (Model 120-202 EAJ, Fenwal Electronic, Milford, MA, USA) was introduced in the composite resin to measure the temperature increase during the curing process. The highest temperature increase was recorded with a Curing Light 2500 halogen LCU (5 and 31 degrees C after 5 and 60 s, respectively), while the lowest temperature increase was recorded for the Innova LCU based on an argon laser (2 and 11 degrees C after 5 and 60 s, respectively). The temperature recorded for LCU based on a blue LED was 3 and 22 degrees C after 5 and 60 s, respectively. There was a quantifiable amount of heat generated during the visible light curing of a composite resin. The amount of heat generated was influenced by the characteristics of the light-curing units used and the irradiation times.

Effect of light-curing units on push-out fiber post bond strength in root canal dentin

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of different light-curing units on the bond strength (push-out) of glass fiber posts in the different thirds of the root (cervical, middle and apical) with different adhesive luting resin systems (dual-cure total-etch; dual-cured and self-etch bonding system; and dual-cure self-adhesive cements), Disks of the samples (n = 144) were used, with approximately 1 mm of thickness of 48 bovine roots restored with glass fiber posts, that were luted with resin cements photo-activated by halogen LCU (QTH, Optilux 501) and blue LED (Ultraled), with power densities of 600 and 550 mW/cm(2), respectively. A universal testing machine (MTS 810 Material Test System) was used with a 1 mm diameter steel rod at cross-head speed of 0.5 mm/min until post extrusion, with load cell of 50 kg, for evaluation of the push-out strength in the different thirds of each sample. The push-out strength values in kgf were converted to MPa and analyzed through Analysis of Variance and Tukey`s test, at significance level of 5%. The results showed that there were no statistical differences between the QTH and LED LCUs. The self-adhesive resin cement had lower values of retention. The total-etch and self-adhesive system resin cements seem to be a possible alternative for glass fiber posts cementation into the radicular canal and the LED LCU can be applied as an alternative to halogen light on photo-activation of dual-cured resin cements.