An in vitro study of certain properties
of a glass ionomer cement
Alfonso Maldonado, DD S, M SD
Marjorie L. Swartz, M S
Ralph W. Phillips, M S, DSc, Ind ian ap o lis
A glass io n o m e r ce m e n t w as tested fo r its release of
flu o rid e, e ffe c t on so lub ility o f en am el, b on d to
en am el, and a b ility to seal th e cavity. It w as c o m p a ­
rable to silicate c e m e n t in its release of flu o rid e and
its e ffe c t on so lub ility of en am el. T h e stren gth of the
bond of th e ce m e n t to to oth stru c tu re w as s im ila r to
p o lyc arb o xy la te cem ent, and it ap p ea red to b e q uite
effective in sealing cavities.
T h e g la ss io n o m e r c e m e n t d e v e lo p e d b y W ilson
an d K e n t an d o th e rs is a h y b rid o f silicate and
p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n ts .1'5 A c c o rd in g to th e se
in v e stig a to rs, th e p o w d e r is a n io n -leach ab le glass
p re p a re d w ith a flu o rid e flux sim ilar to silicate
p o w d e r. B asically , th e liquid is an a q u e o u s so lu ­
tio n o f p o ly a c ry lic acid an alo g o u s to p o ly c a rb o x y ­
late liquid. A v a rie ty o f ap p lic a tio n s h a v e b een
su g g ested fo r th is m aterial, including re s to ra tio n
o f e ro d e d a re a s in th e ce rv ic a l reg io n , sm all C lass
I I I c a v itie s, a n d p its an d fissu res.
T h e o re tic a lly , th e glass io n o m er c e m e n t should
p o sse ss c e rta in d esirab le c h a ra c te ristic s o f b o th
silicate a n d p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n ts. F o r e x am ­
p le , th e c e m e n t sh o u ld a d h e re to to o th stru c tu re ,
as d o e s p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n t; a p p re c iab le
b o n d in g to b o th e n am el an d d en tin h a s b e e n re ­
p o rte d .6,7 I f the c e m e n t b o n d s to to o th stru c tu re
an d if th e bond is m ain tain ed indefinitely, th en its
p o ten tia l to inhibit m icro leak ag e is o b v io u s. T h a t
th e m ate ria l c o n ta in s flu o rid e ,4 as d o e s silicate
ce m e n t p o w d e r, su g g ests po ssib le an ticario g en ic
p ro p e rtie s .8
T h e se fa c to rs a re th e su b je c t o f th is in v estig a­
tion.
Methods and materials
A co m m ercial glass io n o m e r c e m e n t w as u se d in
th e study. T h e b e h a v io r o f th e c e m e n t in its re ­
lease o f fluoride a n d th e re su ltin g effect on acid
en am el solubility w a s c o m p a re d to th a t o f a sili­
c a te c em e n t. T h e b o n d o f th e glass io n o m e r c e ­
m en t to to o th stru c tu re w as like th a t o f a p o ly c a r­
b o x y la te cem e n t. T h e p ro d u cts u se d are listed in
T ab le 1. T h e p o w d er-liq u id ra tio s (T able 1) and
m an ip u lativ e p ro c e d u re s used fo r all m a teria ls
w ere th o se re c o m m en d ed by th e re sp e c tiv e m an ­
u fa c tu re rs. A ll m ixing and specim en p re p a ra tio n s
Table 1 ■ Ratios of powder-liquid recommended by man­
ufacturer.
Cement Brand Powder/liquid
Glass ionomer ASPA* 3 .0 gm/1 ml
Silicate M .Q .t 1.5 gm /0.4 ml
Polycarboxylate D ureioni 1.5 gm/l gm
'A m algam ated D ental C o., London, England
tS .S . W hite Co., Philadelphia, Pa 19102
♦Prem ier D ental Products Co., Philadelphia, Pa 19107
JADA, Vol. 96, M ay 1978 ■ 785
w ere perform ed in a constant-tem perature room
held at 21 ± 1 C . T he tests to determ ine the
available fluoride,9-10 effect on solubility of
enam el,10' 11 bond to tooth stru ctu re ,12 and seal of
the cav ity 13 are those used in previous studies by
this laboratory; thus, they will only be briefly
described.
■ A vailable fluoride: T he am ount and rate o f
fluoride release w ere determ ined by m easuring
the am ount o f fluoride leached during 21 days
from seven disks o f glass ionom er cem ent, 9.5 mm
in diam eter and 2.5 mm thick. Im m ediately after
preparation, the specim ens with their surfaces
protected by glass plates w ere stored in a hum idor
at 37 C for an hour. O n rem oval from the hum idor,
the specim ens w ere suspended by stainless steel
w ires in 3 ml o f fluoride-free distilled w ater. E very
24 hours, the specim ens w ere rinsed with 1 ml of
w ater and transferred to fresh storage m ediums.
E ach d ay ’s storage m edium s, along with the rins­
ings, w ere analyzed for fluoride by use o f fluoride
ion-sensitive electrodes.
T he am ount and pattern o f fluoride leached
from the glass ionom er cem ent specim ens were
com pared to that released from a com parable
num ber o f silicate cem ent specim ens tested in the
same m anner.
■ E nam el solubility: Tw enty-eight sound, ex­
tracted central incisors that had never been per­
m itted to dehydrate w ere used. T he crow ns were
buffed with a slurry o f levigated alum ina to reduce
surface irregularities. T he roots w ere rem oved
and, except for a circle of enam el 3.5 mm in diam ­
eter on the facial surfaces, the crow ns w ere cov­
ered with wax and electrical tape. T he initial solu­
bility o f each tooth was m easured by determ ining
the calcium dissolved from the exposed area d ur­
ing 30 m inutes’ im m ersion in 10 ml o f acetic acid
TH E A U THO RS
Dr. M aldo nado is a t th e D ental School, C entral University
of V enezuela, in Caracas, Dr. S w artz is professor of dental
m aterials, and Dr. Phillips is associate dean fo r research
and research professor of dental m aterials at Indiana Uni­
versity School of Dentistry, 1121 W M ichigan St, In­
dianapolis, 4 6202. Address requests for reprints to Dr. Phil­
lips.
M A LD ON AD O
786 ■ JADA, Vol. 96, May 1978
solution th at had a pH o f 4. C alcium was analyzed
by atom ic absorption spectrophotom etry. A fter
décalcification, the teeth were rebuffed to rem ove
all traces o f the etch, and the cem ent was applied
to the facial surfaces. T he teeth w ere placed in a
hum idor while the cem ent set and then stored in
individual test tubes o f fluoride-free w ater. T he
w ater w as changed every day.
A t the end o f 15 days, the cem ent w as rem oved
and the teeth w ere lightly buffed with the levi­
gated alum ina to rem ove any rem nants o f cem ent.
T he crow ns w ere resealed to expose the same
area of enam el as before. T he exposed enamel
was decalcified and the calcium was determ ined.
T he effect o f the cem ent on enam el was based on
the percent change in calcium dissolved from each
tooth before and after contact with the cem ent.
T hus, each tooth served as its own control. F o r
com parison, 28 teeth w ere tested with silicate ce­
m ent. In addition, 14 teeth to which no cem ent
was applied w ere treated in the same m anner.
■ B ond to enam el and dentin: Bond strength was
evaluated by the ability o f the cem ent-tooth inter­
face to resist rupture when loaded in tension.
Since the m aterial was being evaluated for its use
as a restorative m aterial, the test chosen was one
that m ade use o f a bulk of m aterial.12 T h e facial
surfaces o f bovine incisors w ere ground on a w et,
400-grit, silicon-carbide paper m ounted on a
metallurgical grinder to produce a flat area of
enam el or dentin approxim ately 1 cm in diam eter.
T he roots w ere rem oved, and the crow ns
m ounted in cold-curing acrylic resin to expose the
flattened area. Im m ediately before preparation of
the specim en, the flat area on the tooth was
ground by hand with w et, 600-grit paper. T he sur­
face was w ashed and dried with com pressed air,
and the citric acid conditioner was applied for 30
seconds. T he surface was rinsed and dried.
SW ARTZ PH ILLIPS
 A split silicone ring w ith an in sid e d ia m e te r o f 7
m m w as p la c e d on th e su rfa c e o f th e to o th to form
a ca v ity to receiv e th e m aterial. A b ra s s ring w as
slip p ed o v e r th e o u tsid e o f th e silicone ring to
m ain tain its d im en sio n s d u rin g in se rtio n o f the
m aterial. A fte r th e silicone ring w as filled b y the
c e m e n t, c e m e n t w as also p la c e d in a ca v ity c u t in a
ball bearin g . T h is w as p o sitio n e d on to p o f the
silicone ring so th a t th e p o rtio n s o f c e m e n t w ould
c o h e re . (T h e b earin g se rv e d to a tta c h th e sp e c i­
m en s to th e g rip s o f th e te stin g m ach in e.) F iv e
m in u tes fro m th e s ta rt o f th e m ix , th e co m p leted
sp ecim en s w e re p la c e d in a h u m id o r w h e re th ey
rem ain ed fo r 55 m in u tes. T h e silico n e ring w as
th e n rem o v e d an d th e p e rip h e ry o f th e cem en t-
to o th in te rfa c e w as p a in te d w ith th e c a v ity v ar­
nish re c o m m e n d e d b y th e m a n u fa c tu rer.* T h e
sp ecim en s w e re im m ersed in w a te r a t 37 C fo r 15
d ay s. F o r ty en am el an d 40 d en tin sp e c im e n s w ere
p re p a re d . D u rin g th is in te rv a l, 20 sp ecim en s o f
e a c h en am el an d d e n tin w e re su b je c te d to 2,500
th e rm o c y c le s a t a 40 C te m p e ra tu re differen tial.
T w o te m p e ra tu re b a th s , o n e a t 5 C an d th e o th e r
a t 45 C , w ere u sed fo r th is p u rp o se . T h e tim e
sp e n t in ea c h b a th w a s 30 se c o n d s. S p ecim ens
w ere lo ad ed in te n sio n to failu re using a c ro ssh e a d
sp eed o f 0.03 in/m in.
A n eq u al n u m b e r o f sp ecim en s w e re p re p a re d
w ith th e p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n t an d u n d e rw e n t
th e sam e te s t p ro c e d u re s.
■ S e a l i n g a b i l i t y : F o u rte e n e x tra c te d te e th w ith
e ro d e d a re a s in th e ce rv ic a l reg io n w e re re sto re d
w ith th e glass io n o m e r c e m e n t. N o ca v ity p re p ­
a ra tio n w as m ad e. T h e a re a s w e re p u m iced ,
rin se d , d ried w ith c o m p re sse d a ir, an d tre a te d
w ith th e citric acid so lu tio n as d ire c te d b y the
m a n u fa c tu rer. A fte r th e a re a w as again rin se d and
d rie d , th e c e m e n t w as p laced in th e e ro d e d a re a
Time (days)
M aldo nado— Sw artz— Phillips: G LA S S IO N O M ER C E M E N T S ■ 787
and a p rev io u sly a d a p te d cerv ica l m atrix w as
applied. T e n m in u te s la te r, th e m atrix w as re ­
m o v e d , th e ex c e ss m aterial w as trim m ed , and the
su rface o f the re sto ra tio n w as c o a te d w ith the
ca v ity varn ish . T h e re sto re d teeth w ere sto re d in a
h u m id o r at 37 C fo r an ad d itio n al 50 m in u tes a fte r
w hich th ey w e re im m ersed in w a te r and p laced in
a c o n sta n t-te m p e ra tu re ov en a t 37 C . T w en ty -
fo u r h o u rs la te r, th e final finish o f th e re sto ra tio n
w as p e rfo rm ed . T h e te e th w e re sto re d a t 37 C fo r
an ad d itio n al 14 d ay s. S ev en o f th e te e th w ere
su b jec ted to 2,500 th e rm o cy cle s a t th e 40 C te m ­
p e ra tu re differential.
Sealing w as b ased o n th e ability o f th e re s to ra ­
tio n s to p rec lu d e th e p assag e o f 45C a ++ a t the
m argins an d along th e to o th -re sto ra tio n in terfa ce.
T h e ro o ts and c ro w n s w ere sealed w ith a c o m b i­
n atio n o f tinfoil an d nail po lish to e x p o se only th e
re sto ra tio n and the su rro u n d in g a re a . T h e im m er­
sion tim e in th e iso to p e so lu tio n , w h ich c o n tain e d
0.1 m C i 4SC a ++/m l, w as tw o h o u rs. T h e p H o f the
solution w as 6. P e n e tra tio n o f th e iso to p e w as
fo u n d by sectio n in g th e te e th longitudinally and
placing th e sec tio n s on X -ra y film fo r p ro d u ctio n
o f th e a u to ra d io g ra p h s.
C lass I I I cav ities w ere p re p a re d in 14 te e th and
re sto re d w ith th e g lass io n o m e r ce m en t. T h e re ­
sto rativ e te c h n iq u e s and te s t p ro c e d u re s w e re the
sam e a s th o se d escrib ed p rev io u sly .
Results
■ A v a i l a b l e f l u o r i d e : T h e fluoride re le a se during
21 d a y s fro m b o th th e glass io n o m e r an d silicate
ce m e n t is show n in F ig 1. W ith b o th m ate rials, th e
g re a te st re le a se o c c u rre d during th e first few
d ay s, a fte r w hich th e a m o u n t dim in ish ed and
Fig 1 ■ A verage am o unt of flu oride leached into
w a te r each day from glass io nom er and silicate ce­
m ent specim ens.
T a b le 2 ■ C o m p a riso n o f flu o rid e release data th ro u g h No S ilic a te Glass
re su lts o f analysis o f variance. 20 Cem ent Cem ent Io n o m e r
Cem ent
Non-cumulative data (F released each day)
Source of variation df MS F P i0
Between cements 1 262850 44.46 <001 +
Between specimens of cement 14 5912 0
Between days 20 98016 56.02 <.001
Cement-by-day interaction 20 15672 8.96 <.001
UJ
10
Specimens of cement by day 280 1750 0
Total 335
1 20 -
o
Cumulative data (total F release) * 30 -

Source of variation df MS F P
Between cements 1 55547814 35.44 <.001 40 - --------------

Between specimens of cement 14 1567528

Between days 20 738090 8.63 <.001 50 - _________

Cement-by-day interaction 20 249424 2.94 <.001

Specimen of cement by day 280
Total 335
th e re a fte r rem ain ed nearly c o n s ta n t. D u rin g the
21 d ay s, a to tal o f 710 ¡ x g o f flu o rid e w as leached
from th e silicate c e m e n t, a n d 1,800 ¡jlg w as re ­
leased by th e glass io n o m er c e m e n t. A factorial
an aly sis o f v a ria n c e 14 w as p e rfo rm e d w hich indi­
c a te d a highly significant d ifferen ce ( P C .001) both
in the am o u n t o f fluoride re le a se d each d a y and
th e to tal am o u n t released b y th e tw o m aterials
(T ab le 2). F o r s te n 15 also re p o rte d g re a te r fluoride
re lease from glass io n o m er c e m e n t th a n from sili­
c a te cem en t.
■ E n a m e l s o l u b i l i t y : T h e e ffect o f th e glass
io n o m er cem e n t on th e solubility o f in ta c t enam el
is c o m p a re d to th a t o f silicate c e m e n t in F ig ure 2.
T h e av erag e differen ce in th e am o u n t o f calcium
d isso lv ed in the first and seco n d d écalcificatio n o f
u n tre a te d te e th w as 2.1% . T h e solubility o f
enam el in a p p o sitio n to a g lass io n o m er cem en t
w as re d u c e d 52% co m p ared to silicate c e m e n t in
w hich th e solubility w as re d u c e d by ap p ro x i­
m ately 39% . A S tu d e n t’s t te s t sh o w ed th a t the
tw o m aterials differed sig nificantly (/, < .0 2 ) in
th e ir effect on enam el acid solubility.
60 -
Fig 2 ■ E ffect on so lu b ility of enamel in acetic acid as
influenced by tw o weeks’ contact w ith glass ionom er and
s ilicate cements.
■ B o n d s t r e n g t h : T h e re su lts o f te sts c o n d u cte d
to ev alu ate th e bond o f a glass io n o m er cem en t to
enam el and d entin co m p ared to th at o f poly car-
b o x y late c e m e n t are p re se n te d in F igure 3. T h e
average valu es o f 360 psi fo r glass ionom er-
enam el sp ecim en s and 415 psi fo r poly carb o x y -
late-enam el sp ecim ens n o t su b jected to therm al
cycling do not dep ict the tru e stren g th o f the bond
o f e ith e r ce m en t. In both te st g ro u p s, 90% o f the
failures w ere classified as co h esiv e failure o f the
ce m en ts; the rem aining 10% w ere o f the
co h esiv e-ad h esiv e ty p e s o f failure— th a t is, som e
o f the cem e n t rem ained a tta c h e d to the to o th su r­
face. T h u s, the d a ta a re p ro b ab ly m ore indicative
o f the ten sile stren g th o f the c em en ts th an o f the
actu al stre n g th o f the e n am e l-c em en t bond.
T h erm al cycling had no a p p reciab le effect on the
bond o f th e glass io n o m er c em en t to enam el.
E ighty p e rc e n t o f th e failures again w ere o f a
co h esiv e n a tu re . T h erm al cycling red u c ed the
bond stren g th o f the p o ly c arb o x y la te c em en t by

□ 37° C
500 - ® Therm al Cycled

400 -

^ 300 -
Q_ Fig 3 ■ Average bond strength of glass ionom er

200 -

100 -

0
Enamel D entin
Glass Ionom er Cem ent
Enamel
lui D entin
Polycarboxylate Cem ent
and polycarboxylate cem ent to bovine enamel
and dentin (straight lines in center of bars repre­
sent standard deviation).

788 ■ JADA, Vol. 96, May 1978

a p p ro x im a te ly 25% w ith only 35% o f th e sp e ci­
m ens failing in co h esio n . T h e rem ain in g 65%
failed e ith e r in a d h e sio n o r p artially in ad h esio n .
In b o th c e m e n ts, th e stre n g th o f th e b o n d to
den tin w as lo w er th a n it w as to en am el. F o r d e n ­
tin, th e a v erag e v alu es fo r u n cy cled sp ecim en s
w ere 235 psi fo r th e g lass io n o m er cem e n t an d 305
psi fo r th e p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n t. T h e rm a l c y ­
cling re d u c e d th e a v erag e stre n g th o f th e glass
io n o m er ce m e n t-d e n tin b o n d to ap p ro x im ately
130 psi an d th a t o f p o ly c a rb o x y la te c e m e n t to 120
psi. T h re e sp ecim en s o f each c e m e n t failed during
cycling. S ev en ty -fiv e p e rc e n t o f th e failures
am ong p o ly c a rb o x y la te sp ecim en s w ere o f an
ad h esiv e n a tu re .
T h e n a tu re o f th e ad h esiv e failu re o f th e glass
io n o m er c e m e n t to d en tin w as d ifferen t from th a t
w hich o c c u rre d o n en am el. T h e la tte r w ere
clearly co h e siv e b re a k s w ith th ic k lay ers o f hard
c em e n t ad h erin g to th e en am el su rfa c e (F ig 4). In
d en tin , a v ery thin la y e r rem ain ed th a t a p p e a red
to be c o m p o sed o f ev en ly d isp e rse d p a rtic le s (Fig Fig 5 ■ Fractured glass io nom er cem ent-dentin specim en show­

5). T h e co atin g w as soft an d easily d isp laced by
gentle scrap in g . T e s ts w ere re p e a te d w ith an ad d i­
tion al 40 sp ecim en s o f en am el and d en tin to
ex am in e fu rth e r th e n a tu re o f th e failu res. T h e
sam e re su lts w ere o b tain ed in b o th b o n d stren g th
valu es an d p re se n c e o f th e c o a tin g on th e d en tin
su rface. H o tz an d o th e rs 6 and J e n k in s 7 h av e re ­
p o rte d lo w er v alu es fo r th e b o n d to d en tin th a n to
enam el an d th e failu res on en am el as co h e siv e and
th o se o n d en tin as ad h e siv e -c o h esiv e.
ing thin layer of cem ent particles retained on dentin surface (origi­
nal m agnification x 1 1 ).
T h e d a ta w ere a n aly zed by an aly sis o f v ariance
(T able 3), and th e N e u m a n K e u l’s sequential
range te s t14 w as applied to te s t fo r individual dif­
fe re n ce b etw e en tre a tm e n ts fo r each c em en t (T a ­
b les 4 ,5 ). T h e a d h esio n o f b o th c em en ts to enam el
w h en u n cy cled differed from th e a d h esio n to d e n ­
tin a t P < .0 5 . T h e ad h e sio n v alu e s fo r u n cy cled
and c y cled p o ly c arb o x y late c e m e n t to enam el
w ere also d ifferen t a tP < .0 5 . T h e rm a l cycling had
no significant effect on the glass ionom er-enam ei
b o n d , b u t significantly red u ced th e bond o f both
cem e n ts to d en tin (P < .0 5 ). T h e rm o c y c led poly-
c arb o x y la te -d e n tin and p o ly carb o x y la te-en am -

T a b le 3 ■ S ta tis tic a l c o m p a r is o n o f b o n d s tr e n g th d a ta
t h r o u g h r e s u lts o f a n a ly s is o f v a r ia n c e .
_______ S ource of variation__________ d f MS F______ P_
Between cem ents 1 10,595
Between treatm ents 3 485,860 4.29 P <.01
C em ent-by-treatm ent interaction 3 32,970
W ithin cells 152 7,294
Total 159

T a b le 4 ■ R e s u lt s o f N e u m a n K e u l’s t e s t c o m p a r in g b o n d
s tr e n g th s o f g la s s io n o m e r c e m e n t.
Dentin cycled Dentin 37 C Enam el cycled
Enam el 37 C 2 2 6 .2 5 ' 124.15* 12.05 NS
Enam el cycled 214.20* 122.10*
Dentin 37 C 102.10*
Fig 4 ■ Fractured glass ionom er-enam ei specim en show ing cohe­
'S ig n ific a n t at P < .0 5
sive failu re of cem ent (original m ag nificatio n x 1 0 ). NS— not significant

M aldonado— Sw artz— Phillips: G LASS IO N O M ER C E M E N T S ■ 789

T a b le 5 ■ R e s u lts o f N e u m a n K e u l's te s t c o m p a r in g b o n d
re sto ra tio n s w h ere e ro d ed cerv ical are a s w ere re ­
s tr e n g th s o f p o ly c a r b o x y la te c e m e n t.
sto re d w ith o u t use o f a cav ity p re p a ra tio n .
Dentin cycled Enam el cycled Dentin 37 C
Enam el 37 C 292.80* 119.95* 109.60*
Dentin 37 C 183.20* 10.35 NS
Enam el cycled 172.79*

"Significant at P < .0 5 Discussion and summary

NS— not significant

T h e d a ta on rele ase o f fluoride and solubility o f

el sp ecim en s w ere n o t sig nificantly d ifferen t,
w h e re a s a significant d ifferen ce ( P < .0 5 ) ex isted
b e tw e e n glass io n o m er-en am ei an d io n o m er-den-
tin sp ecim en s th a t w ere th e rm o c y c le d .
■ S e a l i n g a b i l i t y : A u to ra d io g ra p h s re p re se n ta ­
tive o f th e d e g re e s o f leak ag e o ccu rrin g w ith the
re sto ra tio n s u n d e r th e tw o te s t c o n d itio n s are
sh o w n in F ig u re 6. A b lack line originating at the
m argin an d p ro g ressin g alo n g th e to o th -re sto ra -
tio n in terface in d icates iso to p e p e n e tra tio n .
Iso to p e p e n e tra tio n co u ld n o t b e d e te c te d in C lass
III re sto ra tio n s, cy cled o r u n c y c le d , an d no a p ­
p reciab le leakage w as n o ted am ong th e C lass V
enam el in dicate th a t the glass io n o m er cem en t
should be as effective as silicate c em en t in in h ib it­
ing sec o n d ary caries. In a d d itio n , th e glass
io n o m er c em en t b o n d s to b o th enam el an d d entin
b u t, a s w ith p o ly c arb o x y late ce m e n t, th e bond is
stro n g er to enam el th a n it is to den tin . A lthough
the te st perio d w as sh o rt, th e glass ionom er-
c em en t re sto ra tio n s ap p e a re d to effectively seal
C lass II I cav ities ev en w hen th e re sto re d te e th
w ere su b jec ted to th erm o cy clin g . A good seal o f
C lass V cav ities w as ac h iev e d e v en w h e re the
m argins w ere b o rd ered w holly o r p a rtia lly by
ce m en tu m o r den tin . It a p p ea rs th a t th is c em en t
sy stem h as ad v a n tag e s o v e r re sto ra tiv e resin s.

CLASS III RESTORATIONS

€ Fig 6 ■ A utoradiographs representative of

leakage patterns observed in Class III and Class
V restorations of glass ionom er cem ent in ex­
tracted teeth stored at 37 C and therm al cycled.

37 C CYCLED

CLASS V RESTORATIONS

t «
790 ■ JADA, Vol. 96, May 1978
H o w e v e r, b e fo re th e sp ecific ap p licatio n s o f th e
glass io n o m e r can be d e lin e a te d , a n u m b e r o f
thin g s m u st be c o n sid e re d . T h e m a te ria l is so m e ­
w h a t o p a q u e ,16 a n d th is co u ld lim it th e sco p e o f
ap p licatio n s. A lth o u g h M c L e a n and W ilso n 17
sta te th a t th e c e m e n t a p p e a rs to be ab ra sio n re sis­
ta n t clinically w h e n u se d as a p it an d fissu re seal­
a n t o r filling, m o re w o rk n e e d s to b e d o n e to
con firm th is.
T h e authors ackn ow led ge th e assistance of B arbara R hodes and
H azel C lark in conducting th e tests, and the assistance of Dr.
Rosario P otter in th e statistical analysis of th e data.
Portions o f this research are taken from a thesis by Dr. M a l­
donado in partial fulfillm ent fo r the M S D degree. T h is paper was
presented a t the annu al m eetin g of th e A m erican Association for
D ental Research, Las Vegas, June 1977.
* Detrey’s Special Cavity Varnish, A m alg am ated D ental, London,
E ngland.
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