Effect of fluorosis on dentine shear bond strength of a self-etching bonding system

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of dental fluorosis on shear bond strength of a composite material to dentine. Forty human premolar teeth were classified according to the severity of fluorosis using the Thylstrup and Fejerskov index and were divided into four groups (TFI scores of 0, 3, 4 and 5) of 10 teeth. Non-fluorosed teeth (TFI score of 0) served as the control group. A self-etching light-cured bonding system, Clearfil SE Bond, and a micro-hybrid light-cured composite, Clearfil AP-X were selected for the study. Buccal surfaces of mounted teeth were ground flat to expose the dentine. Composite cylinders, 4 mm diameter and 4 mm length, were bonded to the treated dentine surfaces. Shear bond strength was measured with an universal testing machine at a cross-head speed of 0.5 mm min(-1). After failure, the fracture surfaces were examined under a stereo microscope. The mean bond strength was 24.37 +/- 3.54 MPa for non-fluorosed teeth and varied between 22.72 +/- 3.52 and 27.02 +/- 5.91 MPa for fluorosed teeth. The difference between the mean values for bond strength was not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Adhesive mode of failure was most prevalent in non-fluorosed teeth. It can be concluded that fluorosis does not affect the shear bond strength of composite material to human dentine.