Objective:

The aim of the present study was to compare the shear bond strength (SBS) of orthodontic brackets bonded to the enamel after at-home and in-office bleaching treatments.

Methods:

Sixty bovine incisors were subjected to initial color readings and then classified into three groups: CP (16% carbamide peroxide), HP (35% hydrogen peroxide), and C (control). After treatments, new color readout was obtained, and orthodontic brackets were bonded to the bleached area. Half of the samples of each group (n=10) were subjected to thermal-mechanical cycling (TMC) testing (1,200,000 cycles; 44.2 N; 2 Hz/s), whereas the other half were stored in distilled water at 37 °C for 24 h. Samples were subjected to the SBS test at a speed of 0.5 mm/min. The mean SBS was analyzed (two-way ANOVA, Bonferroni test, p<0.05), and the fracture patterns were classified as adhesive, cohesive, and mixed types.

Results:

There was no difference (p>0.05) in SBS values between the samples subjected to TMC and the cycled samples in any group. Samples subjected to carbamide peroxide presented lower SBS (p<0.05) than the non-cycled ones. Enamel adhesive fractures were higher in the bleached groups than in the control group, which presented mixed fractures prevalence, regardless of whether it was subjected to TMC or not.

Conclusion:

Thermal-mechanical cycling was not significant for SBS of orthodontic brackets, but tooth bleaching was a factor.

Keywords: Mechanical stress, orthodontic brackets, shear strength, tooth bleaching