Fabrication and characterization of remineralizing dental composites containing calcium type pre-reacted glass-ionomer (PRG-Ca) fillers

Objective. To fabricate and characterize dental composites with calcium type pre-reacted glass-ionomer (PRG-Ca) fillers. Methods. PRG-Ca fillers were prepared by the reaction of calcium fluoroaluminosilicate glass with polyacrylic acid. Seven dental composites were produced from the same organic matrix (70/30 wt% Bis-GMA/TEGDMA), with partial replacement of barium borosilicate (BaBSi) fillers (60 wt%) by PRG-Ca fillers (wt%): E0 (0) - control, E1 (10), E2 (20), E3 (30), E4 (40), E5 (50) and E6 (60). Enamel remineralization was evaluated in caries-like enamel lesions induced by S. mutans biofilm using micro-CT. The following properties were characterized: degree of conversion (DC%), roughness (Ra), Knoop hardness (KHN), flexural strength (FS), flexural modulus (FM), water sorption (W-sp), water solubility (W-sl), and translucency (TP). Data were analyzed to one-way ANOVA and Tukey's HSD test (alpha = 0.05). Results. All composites with PRG-Ca induced enamel remineralization. E0 and E1 presented similar and highest DC% than E2 = E3 = E4 = E5 = E6. Ra and KHN were not influenced by PRG-Ca fillers (p < 0.05). The higher the content of PRG-Ca, the lower FS, FM and TP (p < 0.05). W-sp increased linearly with the content of PRG-Ca fillers (p <0.05). E6 presented the highest W-sl (p < 0.05), while the W-sl of the other composites were not different from each other (p > 0.05). Significance. Incorporation of 10-40 wt.% of PRG-Ca fillers endowed remineralizing potential to dental composites without jeopardizing the overall behavior of their physicochemical properties. Dental composites with PRG-Ca fillers seems to be a good alternative for reinforcing the enamel against caries development. (C) 2021 The Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study fabricated dental composites with PRG-Ca fillers, which induced enamel remineralization and showed good overall physicochemical properties.