Objective: Mixing properties and dosing
accuracy of handmix filling materials are important factors for the quality and
reliability of the result. The purpose of this study was to investigate mixing
and dosing properties of an experimental handmix glass ionomer filling material
(KMMP, 3M ESPE) in comparison to commercially available materials.
Methods: To judge the mixing properties,
KMMP, Ketac Molar (KM, 3M ESPE) and Fuji IX (FIX, GC) were mixed by 35 dentists
according to the manufacturer instructions. Afterwards ease of mixing and
mixing time were assessed subjectively.
Additionally an exact determination of the
mixing time was carried out with 16 dental assistants. Powder and liquid of KMMP,
KM, FIX and Ionofil Molar (IM, Voco) was mixed to get 750mg of paste. The time
needed to obtain a homogeneous paste was measured 6 times each.
To determine the dosing accuracy of each
material the amount of powder in the leveled dosing spoon was weighed for 15
times.
Results: The dentists judged KMMP to be
easier to mix compared to Ketac Molar by 87% and to Fuji IX by 86% and to
consume less time for mixing compared to Ketac Molar by 75% and to Fuji IX by
71%.
Average mixing time (± standard deviation)
and variation of the masses of dosed powder (expressed by percentage) are given
in the table. Groups with no statistically significant difference (pairwise
t-test, p£0.05) are marked by the same characters.
|
|
KMMP
|
KM
|
FIX
|
IM
|
|
Mixing time [sec]
|
33±7 a
|
45±10 b
|
35±8 a
|
43±9 b
|
|
Dosing accuracy [%]
|
4
|
10
|
8
|
10
|