Simranjit Singh Sidhu

In the past, numerous in-vitro bond strength studies were done after 24 hours of bracket bonding because they considered that polymerization is expected to complete at the end of 24 hours. However, this time period of 24 hrs does not reflect in clinical orthodontic practice, in which the arch wire is usually placed immediately after bracket bonding. In orthodontic practice, time span from bracket bonding to initial arch wire insertion varies according to the number of teeth being bonded and the experience of the clinician. Most orthodontists insert the arch wire into the bracket slot from 10 to 15 minutes after bonding therefore, initial bond strength of orthodontic attachment is highly important. Hence, the present in vitro study was conducted to evaluate the shear bond strength of orthodontic bracket bonded with conventional acid etching technique, pumice and acid etching technique, micro etching with sandblasting, and sandblasting with conventional acid etching technique at different debonding times of 5 min, 30 min, 60 min, and 24 hrs.