In vitro assessment of retention and microleakage in pit and fissure sealants following enamel pre-etching with sodium hypochlorite deproteinisation

Aim The purpose of this study was to assess and compare the rate of sealant retention and microleakage after placement on etched enamel with and without prior deproteinisation. Materials and methods Study design: 75-five freshly extracted third molars were randomly assigned to either of two pit and fissure treatment methods. Samples from both groups were etched with 37% phosphoric acid gel for 15 seconds, followed by placement of a sealant, and then subjected to thermocycling for evaluation of sealant retention. After that, specimens were immersed in rhodamine B, sectioned longitudinally, and examined under a con focal laser scanning microscope for assessment of microleakage. Collected data were statistically analysed using chi-square and Fisher exact tests with an a level of 0.05. Results The rate of sealant retention was similar between the two study groups (P = 0.073), but the rate of sealant microleakage was significantly lower in the enamel deproteinisation group (P < 0.001) than in the control group. Conclusion Based on these findings, we recommend the deproteinisation method prior to enamel acid etching to obtain better clinical results with sealants.