clinical comparison of various esthetic restorative options for coronal build-up of primary anterior teeth

background: this study was designed to compare the clinical performance of composite, strip crowns, biological restoration, and composite with stainless steel band when used for the coronal build-up of anterior teeth. materials and methods: a total of 20 patients aged 3-6 years presenting with mutilated primary anterior teeth due to caries or trauma were selected for the study using randomized simple sampling. a total of 52 primary anterior teeth were randomly divided into four equal groups having 13 teeth in each group. teeth in group i were restored with composite, in group ii with strip crowns, in group iii with biologic restoration and with stainless steel band reinforced composite in group iv. the restorations were evaluated for color match, retention, surface texture, and anatomic form according to ryge’s direct (us public health service) evaluation criteria at baseline (immediate postoperative), after 48 h, 3, 6, and 9 months. the data obtained were statistically analyzed using chi-square test, and level of signifi cance, that is, p value was determined. results: at baseline, none of the groups showed any color changes. other than group iii all other groups showed highly signifi cant changes ( p < 0.05) in color after 3 months. loss of retention was seen in both groups i and iv after 3 months. after 6 months, retention loss was seen in all the groups except group ii, in which loss was seen after 9 months ( p > 0.05). deterioration in surface texture was exhibited maximum by restorations in group iv followed by group i at 3 months. whereas, no surface changes were seen in group ii and iii. only group i and iv showed discontinuity in anatomic form after 3 months. after 6 months, except in group ii, discontinuity in anatomic form was observed in all the groups. discontinuity in anatomic form was seen in all the 4 groups after 9 months although the difference was not signifi cant ( p > 0.05). conclusion: biological restoration was found to be most satisfying esthetically owing to color compatibility with the patient’s tooth. thus, it has a great potential to be used as esthetic restorative option in primary anteriors. key words: composite resin, crown, deciduous, dental, dental caries, dental restoration, esthetics