# Acid Etching's Effect on Hypomineralized Teeth's Bond Strength and Enamel Surface Structure

## TL;DR

This study found that acid etching improves the bond strength of orthodontic brackets on hypomineralized teeth, though it causes more enamel damage.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates that acid etching significantly enhances bracket bond strength on hypomineralized enamel.

## Key findings

- Acid etching significantly increased shear bond strength compared to no etching.
- Etching caused more enamel destruction, which may require additional treatment.
- Bonding without etching resulted in lower tackiness and bond strength.

## Abstract

The current study evaluated the bracket bond strength of hypomineralized teeth with and without acid etching. Twenty premolar teeth extracted for orthodontic purposes were used in this study. Hypomineralization was induced in all experimental teeth using a cariogenic solution. Then the teeth were divided into two groups. In the first group, orthodontic brackets were bonded by orthodontic adhesive (Green Gloo, Ormco, USA) without etching, while in the second group, further etching was used before bonding. All specimens were examined for morphological changes in the enamel surface after demineralization and debonding using a scanning electron microscope. The shear bond strength was also measured, and the recorded values of bond strengths were collected and statistically analyzed. All massed results were statistically evaluated via an independent t-test to equate Group 1 (G1) and Group 2 (G2). A p-value of < 0.05 is deemed to be statistically substantial. The shear bond strength of groups interacted by orthodontic adhesive with etching (Group 2) was considerably greater than that of groups bonded by orthodontic adhesive without etching. The etching indicates considerably greater tackiness rates compared to bonding without etching, although it leaves more destructed cores, which may need further treatment.