Microshear bond strength evaluation of surface pretreated zirconia ceramics bonded to dentin

OBJECTIVES To comparatively assess the micro shear bond strength (MSBS) of dentin bonded surface pre-treated zirconia ceramics. MATERIALS AND METHODS Zirconia blocks were sectioned into 50 cubical blocks. The blocks were further categorized into five groups (n = 10 each). Group I: No treatment was performed on zirconia samples; Group II: The zirconia samples were sand-blasted; Group III: Group II + etched with 9.8% of hydrofluoric (HF) acid for 60 s; Group IV: The sandblasted zirconia samples were selectively infiltrated with low fusing porcelain; and Group V: Group IV + etched using 9.8% HF acid gel. The zirconia specimens were then bonded to dentin samples, and the samples were tested for MSBS evaluation using universal testing machine. RESULTS The MSBS of all the four experimental groups shows greater value than group I. Among the experimental groups, group V and group IV do not show any statistical significant difference, whereas the mean MSBS of groups IV and V were statistically greater than group III and group II. However, groups I, II, and III do not show any statistical significant difference in mean MSBS values between them. CONCLUSION Selective infiltration etching of zirconia ceramics provides the highest bond strength with resin cement.