Since the invention and application of rotary instruments, the operative treatment of carious lesions has often resulted in considerable removal of tooth structure. More recently, newer techniques for removal of carious dentine have been developed in an attempt to minimize this excessive tissue loss. Some of the technical available to excavate demineralised dentin clinically can be classified as mechanical and non-mechanical rotary and non-rotary and include dental hand pieces/burs, manual excavators, air-abrasion, air-polishing, ultrasonication, sono-abrasion, chemo-mechanical methods, lasers and enzymes. This paper addresses a technique in which carious dentin is treated with cansolv gel (chemo-mechanical caries removal) and using the conventional rotary instrument system for caries removal. SEM analysis of the treated surfaces of the two treatment groups was done. This was followed by composite core build up and strength testing (Instron Universal Testing Machine) to evaluate the efficacy of the above-mentioned methods. 28 recently extracted carious human molars were taken and divided into two treatment groups (Group I and Group II). Group I was subjected to carisolv treatment and group II was subjected to rotary instrument treatment. Shear bond strengths were measured following composite core build up and the results were analyzed statistically. The SEM study depicts more debris in group I and group II and the SBS values for group I and group II were 8.73 and 10.86 (mean) respectively. The statistical analysis depicts significant difference between the two treatment groups at 1% level (p<0.01). Cansolv though a step forward in the caries removal method, is not in a position to replace rotary instruments for caries removal.

Adhesive dentistry has revolutionized our field of dentistry and composites have now become the material of choice. The hybrid Composites developed for posteriors teeth have a compressive strength comparable to that of amalgam but Polymerization shrinkage of these composites still seems to affect the clinical longevity of the restoration Newer materials have been developed to overcome this problem, one such material is Fiber reinforced composite. This study was under taken to evaluate the fracture resistance of teeth restored with posterior composites and Fiber reinforced composites.

Since the introduction of acid etching technique in 1955 by Buonocore we have come a long way, where along this time span a wide range of etchants like phosphoric acid, EDTA, polyacrylic acid, malleic acid, lactic acid have been tested for their efficacy. Though phosphoric acid when used on enamel proved efficient when was used on dentin its effect has been questioned as it being a strong acid, denatured the collagen fibers, EDTA on the other hand when used on dentin preserved the integrity of the collagen fibers. So the objective of the present study was to investigate the scanning electron microscopic texture of enamel and dentin cavity surfaces, following application of EDTA gel and phosphoric acid gel.

Traditional enamel conditioning steps include acid etching water rinsing air-drying application of bonding agent. These steps could be simplified by the use of hydrophilic acid monomers capable of etching and penetrating the dentin simultaneously. Monomers with these properties are used as self-etching primers in various dentin adhesives. The aim of this study was to compare the etch pattern of a self-etching primer and that of 37% phosphoric acid on human enamel and dentin. Sixteen central incisors were selected for the study. They were divided into two groups: Group 1- consisted of 8 specimens for analysis of enamel etch patterns Group 2-consisted of 8 specimens for analysis of dentin etch patterns. The specimens were subdivided into two groups of 4 specimens each. Subgroup A : 37% phosphoric acid Subgroup B : Self etching primer After the etching treatment the specimens were analyzed under SEM. The SEM analysis showed that 37% phosphoric acid showed distinct etch patterns on enamel and dentin. The self-etching primer, on dentin showed open dentinal tubules and tubules occluded by the primer component. The effect of the self-etching primer on enamel was not comparable with that of phosphoric acid.