Determination of degree of conversion as a function of depth of a photo-initiated dental restoration composite-III application to commercial Prodigy Condensable™

In this third work, we evaluated the degree of conversion (DC) versus depth of dental filling composite named Prodigy Condensable (TM) using infrared spectroscopy. Confirming previous results, there was a gradual reduction of DC with increasing depth but the composite exhibited extreme values of DC, an upper value (45.9%) on the surface and a lower one (6.1%) at a depth of 5 mm. The composite presented the worst performance among materials studied. The composite formulation was 80% of inorganic fillers and BisfenolA/dimethacrylate (BisGMA) (18 %)/triethyleneglycoldimethacrylate (TEGDMA) (2.0%) as monomers. As stated before, type/ratio/viscosity of monomers and type, amount, size and size distribution of fillers all together had an important role in the cure reaction contributing to the final performance of the composite. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.