title: A resin impression SEM technique for examining the glass-ionomer cement chemical fusion zone.
abstract: Examination of the auto-cure glass-ionomer cement (GIC)-tooth interface using conventional SEM techniques causes severe dehydration and subsequent fracturing of the GIC, hampering accurate assessment of the GIC-tooth interface. A simple, accurate impression technique was developed to examine the GIC chemical fusion zone. Samples of GIC were bonded to prepared cavities and tooth surfaces that had been conditioned with 10% polyacrylic acid for 10 s and allowed to mature for 24 h in neutral buffered saline, sectioned under water and then acid etched with 37% phosphoric acid for 30 s to remove sectioning smear layer and to highlight surface morphology, rinsed and gently dried. Optibond Solo Plus was then applied and photo-polymerized. Increments of posterior hybrid composite were then bonded onto the Optibond and photo-polymerized. The tooth sections with attached GIC were then dissolved off the bonded composite with 18% HCl for 4 days. Subsequent SEM examination of the resin impressions created with this technique provided high-quality, detailed images of the GIC chemical fusion zone, without the development of the fracture artefacts associated with the desiccation of GIC. The resin impression technique described proved to be a simple and successful method for providing accurate SEM images of the GIC-tooth chemical fusion.
authors.affiliation: gwmilicich@xtra.co.nz
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Milicich
mesh_terms: D003188:Composite Resins; D005899:Glass Ionomer Cements / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods*; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods*; D014070:Tooth / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D003188:Composite Resins; D005899:Glass Ionomer Cements