Comparative Invitro Testing of the Tensile Bond Strength Under Artificial Aging Between Different Lithium Disilicate Ceramics to Composite Substrate: A Novel Methodology

Objective The purpose of this study is to compare the tensile bond strength values to composite substrate pre- and post-aging between IPS E.max CAD and Initial LiSi. Methods The study utilized four blocks of IPS E.max CAD LT/B1 C14 (Ivoclar Vivadent, Liechtenstein, Germany) (referred to as E) and four blocks of Initial LiSi LT/B1 (GC, Tokyo, Japan) (referred to as L). These blocks were milled to produce 76 ceramic bars measuring 2 mm × 2 mm × 10 mm (E = 38, L = 38/n = 19). After acid etching with hydrofluoric acid (BISCO, Schaumburg, IL, USA) and silane application (BIS-SILANE, BISCO), the specimens were embedded in putty (Express STD, 3M, Decatur, AL, USA) to create a mold for the resin cement (RelyX U200, 3M). Subsequently, one group of each brand underwent mechanical tensile testing (E0 and L0), while the other groups were subject to tensile testing after artificial aging involving 500 thermal cycles between 5 and 55°C (E5 and L5). The mean tensile strength for each group (E0, E5, L0, and L5) was determined using the Brown-Forsythe one-way ANOVA and Tamhane's post hoc tests. Results Initial LiSi showed a superior pre-aging mean (11.7 MPa). However, both materials had identical post-aging means (7.6 MPa). There were no statistically significant differences, except between the dependent Initial LiSi groups (L0-L5). Most failure modes were mixed (cohesive cement and adhesive). There were no cohesive failures on the cement side except in three specimens of Initial LiSi post-aging. Conclusion The tested conditions have shown that Initial Lisi exhibited the highest pre-aging mean; however, it exhibited inferior bond stability under aging conditions compared to IPS E.max CAD. Analyzing the microstructure before and after aging may provide insights into the greater decrease in bond strength observed in the Initial LiSi specimens.