What are the factors that affect adhesion to tooth structure ?
Adhesion to enamel, dentin and the restorative metals often is inhibited simply because most of the adhesive materials do not wet the substrate well. Poor surface wettability allows void formation at the interfaces,and further stress concentration at these areas of discontinuities greatly reduces adhesion. Numerous clinical factors have been cited that affect adhesion to tooth structure. Among the most common ones are as follows: a) Salivary and blood contaminations b) Moisture contamination- Threeway syringe / Hand piece / compressor c) Oil contamination – Handpiece / Three way syringe and compressor d) Mechanical undercuts e) Fluoride content f) Presence of Plaque , calculus, stains and debris g) Constituents of temporary cements ยท Dentinal characteristics Most of the reasons cited above are under the operators control but factors like dentinal characteristics vary from patient to patient.
