Effect of Resin Cement Mixing and Insertion Method into the Root Canal on Cement Porosity and Fiberglass Post Bond Strength

Purpose: To evaluate the method of resin cement mixing and insertion into the root canal on resin cement porosity and fiberglass-post push-out bond strength (PBS). Materials and Methods: One hundred twenty human single-rooted teeth were sectioned to a length of 15 mm, endodontically filled, and received a fiberglass post cemented with 3 self-adhesive resin cements (RelyX U200, seT, Panavia SA) using 4 mixing methods/insertion techniques (handmix/endodontic file. handmix/Centrix syringe, automix/conventional tip, automix/endo tip). The samples were scanned using micro-CT. Two slices from the cervical, middle, and apical thirds were submitted to push-out bond strength (PBS) testing, and failure modes were classified. The PBS, volume of resin cement, and porosity data were analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey's test. Results: The porosity was lowest in the cervical third and highest in the apical third, irrespective of the resin cement. The porosity was lower in the the automix/endo tip group compared to the handmix/endodontic file group. The use of Centrix or endo tip reduced the porosity and increased the PBS in the apical third compared with the use of endodontic files. The root canal depth reduced the PBS for U200 and seT when handmix/endodontic files were used. U200 and seT using the automix method increased the PBS, thus eliminating the effect of root region, irrespective of the insertion technique. In general, U200 showed higher PBS and Panavia lower PBS. Adhesive failure between root dentin and resin cement was predominant. Conclusions: Automixing the cement and using an endo tip produces fewer voids and increased the bond strengths.