Objective: To determine the radiopacity of different composite dental restorative products by comparison to an aluminum step wedge.
Method: (ISO4049:2009); Twenty rounded discs of five composite with (1.00 mm ±0.05) were prepared and separated into groups (N=4).
An aluminum step wedge with 8 equally-spaced increments of 0.5 mm (±0.01) was used for thickness comparison (thickness ranged from 0.5 mm-4.0 mm). Each specimen and wedge were placed in the center of the sensor and radiated at a distance of 50 mm at 40 mV for 0.09secs of exposure. Each digital image was exported to the Kodak Digital Software 6.11.5.2. Three data points were averaged for each specimen to render the upper and lower limits of the wedge and the average of 3 readings of gray shades were obtained. The experiment rendered one average radiodensity per composite group.
Results: The data was compared by using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA, p<0.05). There was a statistically significant difference between the means of the four variables at the 95% confidence level. The Tukey Test further showed that there was a statistically significant difference between Group 3 and Groups 1,2,4,5. Esthet-X HD had the highest calculated radiopacity.
Group | Product | Mean Radiopacity |
1 | Filtek Supreme XTE (3M ESPE) | 2.67 ± 0.06886 |
2 | Gradia Direct X (GC) | 2.84 ± 0.07269 |
3 | Esthet-X (Dentsply) | 3.70 ± 0.07184 |
4 | Herculite Ultra (Kerr) | 3.11 ± 0.11593 |
5 | Experimental (SDI) | 2.89 ± 0.05689 |
Conclusion: Groups 3 and 4, respectively, have the highest radiopacity in this study. They are statistically different from each other and the rest of the Groups. This shows that Group 3 should be more radiopaque in radiographs. Further testing is necessary to judge the clinical radiographic significant of these results.
Research sponsored in part by SDI