Radiopacity Related to Composition of Restorative Glass-Ionomer Cements with the Use of Digital Images

The aim of this study was to evaluate the radiopacity of fourteen restorative glass-ionomer cements and to associate the results obtained with the Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. The glass-ionomers evaluated were Maxxion R (MX), Vitro Fil (VF), Bioglass R (BG), Ionglass R (IG), IonoFil Plus (IP), GlassIonomer Type II (GI), Vitro Molar (VM), IonoStar Molar (IS), Equia Forte (EF), GC Gold Label 9 (GL9), Riva Self Cure (RV), Ketac Molar Easy Mix (KM), Fuji II (FJ2) and ChemFil Rock (CR). The materials were handled following manufacturer’s instructions and six specimens were made of each material (Ø15×1 mm) (ISO 9917-1: 2007). After storage for 7 days, the radiopacity was determined for each material using a dental X-ray machine. Data were subjected to one-way ANOVA and Tukey’s test (α=0.05). Superficial analysis was evaluated for the 14 materials with a Scanning Electronic Microscope equipped with an X-radiation detector. The highest radiopacity values were registered for FJ2, IS, GL9 and CR and the lowest for MX (p<0.05). There was significant difference in radiopacity among the materials and seven of the fourteen tested GICs could not be labeled as radiopaque materials by its manufacturers according to ISO 9917-1, however four of them are described as radiopaque in its package inserts. The strontium and zinc content appear to be associated with the higher radiopacity values found.