| Introduction: Orthodontists work to achieve a favorable esthetic and functional result, only to have the outcome tainted by the presence of demineralization upon appliance removal. The presence of WSL's is a disappointment to both orthodontists and patients. Several products have been developed to prevent this unfortunate damage to tooth structure, including "Opalseal" and "Ortho-coat". Opalseal is a 38% filled primer that releases and recharges fluoride. Ortho-coat is a fluoride releasing, light cure, hydrophilic resin that coats both the bracket and tooth surface preventing decalcification. The aim of this study was to investigate the barrier effect of Opalseal and Ortho-coat compared to both a fluoride varnish group and a control group. Methods: Utilizing fifty-four human central incisors, the teeth were divided into four groups to receive treatment with the following materials: Opalseal (Ultradent, South Jordan, UT), Ortho-coat (Pulpdent Corporation, Watertown, MA), Cavity Shield (OMNII Oral Pharmaceuticals, West Palm Beach, Fla.), and a control using Transbond XT (3M Unitek, St. Paul, MN). The groups of teeth were treated with the corresponding material following manufacturer's instructions and the bonding of an orthodontic button was incorporated into the procedure. The teeth were then subjected to 10K thermocycles and treated for 48hrs with 3.8ph demineralization solution. Each tooth was then sectioned and imaged using a digital microscope (Keyence VHX 600 Series) at 100x magnification. The depth of demineralization was measured for all groups using two separate distances from the edge of the orthodontic button corresponding to the center of both the treated enamel zone and the untreated enamel zone. The results were statistically analyzed using a mixed model ANOVA (p<0.05). Results: Control, Varnish, Opalseal, and Ortho-coat showed no statistically significant differences for protection of the treated enamel zone. The opalseal group showed more demineralization in the untreated enamel zone. Conclusions: There was no difference in demineralization around bonded orthodontic appliances between the groups. There was no difference in the groups relative to the control for the untreated enamel indicating that no fluoride releasing benefit was seen. |
