Development and physical-mechanical characterization of experimental self-adhesive calcium-based cements for pulp capping

This study aimed to evaluate the bond strength (BS), degree of conversion (DC), calcium release (CR), and viscosity (VS) of experimental self-adhesive calcium-based cements for pulp capping purposes. Three resin-based experimental cements containing no calcium (CONTROL), calcium hydroxide (HYDROCAL), and calcium chloride (CLORECAL) were synthesized and compared with a commercial resin-based calcium hydroxide cement (Ultra-Blend Plus® - ULTRAPLUS). For the BS, a testing machine performed in bovine dentin (n = 10). The DC (n = 5) was measured through Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy coupled to an attenuated total reflectance device (FTIR/ATR). The CR (n = 5) was analyzed through an atomic absorption spectrophotometer at 3 h, 24 h and 72 h. A rheometer was used to obtain the VS (n = 5). The data were statistically analyzed using one and two-way ANOVA/Tukey tests (α = 0.05). For BS, all experimental materials showed statistically higher values than the commercial material (p < 0.01). For the DC, the CONTROL and HYDROCAL cements showed statistically higher values than the others (p < 0.01). CLORECAL and ULTRAPLUS showed statistically higher CR values after 72 h (p < 0.01). The HYDROCAL and CLORECAL cements showed statistically higher VS values than the others (p < 0.01). Therefore, the experimental calcium chloride-based cement presented a better overall behavior.