Publication

Abstract : Aim: To assess the effectiveness of various surface treatments and adhesives on the bond strength of zirconia-based ceramic to dentin. Materials and methods: Eighty samples of zirconia were subjected to the four-surface treatment protocols (sandblasting, 48% hydrofluoric acid (HF), 48% hydrofluoric acid + 70% nitric acid (HNO3) and no treatment (control) following which the samples from each group were subdivided into two subgroups (n = 10) based on the resin cement employed for cementation (RelyX U200 and G-Cem Linkforce). The bonded specimens were subjected to shear stress to measure the bond strength using Universal testing machine. To test the difference in bond strength among the eight study groups, the Kruskal–Wallis ANOVA test was applied and for comparison between cements in each group, Mann–Whitney U test was applied. Results: The highest bond strength values were observed for 48% HF group cemented with G-Cem Linkforce resin cement (16.220 ± 1.574) and lowest for control group–RelyX (4.954 ± 0.972). G-Cem cement showed higher bond strength than RelyX for all surface treatments except 48% HF + 70% nitric acid. Conclusion: It can be inferred that 48% HF can etch zirconia and generate a porous structure that proves to be beneficial for bonding. Clinical significance: The increasing demand for esthetics has led to the replacement of metal-ceramic materials with zirconia-based ceramics. However, the chemical inertness of zirconia to various conventional surface treating agents has continuously challenged researchers to discover a new surface treatment protocol that could enhance the bond strength of zirconia.