ABSTRACT
The purpose of the present study was to compare the influence of post-surface treatment with silane, hydrogen peroxide, hydrofluoric acid or sandblasting and to investigate the effect of silane in combination of the other treatments on the microtensile bond strength between fiber posts and composite resins for core build-up. Thirty-two glass-fiber posts (FRC Postec Plus, Ivoclar Vivadent, Schaan, Liechtenstein) were divided into eight groups according to the different surface pretreatments performed: silane application (S); immersion in 28% hydrogen peroxide (HP); immersion in hydrogen peroxide followed by application of silane (HP-S); immersion in 4% hydrofluoric acid gel (HF); immersion in hydrofluoric acid gel followed by application of silane (HF-S); sandblasting with aluminum oxide particles (SB); sandblasting followed by application of silane (SB-S). In control group, no surface treatment was performed. The composite resin (Tetric Flow, Ivoclar Vivadent, Schaan, Liechtenstein) was applied onto the posts to produce the composite cylinder specimen. It was sectioned into sticks to measure the microtensile bond strength. The data was analyzed with one-way ANOVA and LSD test for post hoc comparison (p < 0.05). Post pretreatment with sandblasting enhanced the interfacial strength between the fiber posts and core materials. Moreover, sand-blasting followed by application of silane appears to be the most effective method that can improve the clinical performance of glass fiber posts.