In vitro evaluation of the effect of two pediatric syrups on the microhardness and surface roughness of restoration materials.

Background: The prolonged use of pediatric syrups without adequate control of oral hygiene can cause effects on the physical characteristics of the restoration materials, which in turn can cause deterioration of the material and subsequent carious recurrence. Aim: To evaluate the effect of two long-term use syrups in children on the microhardness and surface roughness of three restorative materials.

Material and methods: Three study groups were formed, consisting of a conventional self-curing ionomer cement, a light-curing ionomer cement, and a light-curing composite resin. Each group had 40 specimens made with the respective restorative material; in addition, these were distributed in 2 subgroups with 20 specimens each, which were immersed in Paracetamol and Ferrous Sulfate in syrup following a protocol that consisted of 2 minutes each day for 28 days.

Results: Over time (0, 7, 14, 21, and 28 days), when evaluating microhardness, the composite resin subgroup exposed to ferrous sulfate (p = 0.027) and the Ketac Molar ionomeric cement subgroup (p = 0.002) exposed to Paracetamol showed statistically significant differences; while, when evaluating surface roughness, the composite resin subgroups (p = 0.032) and Ketac Molar ionomeric cement (p = 0.01) exposed to ferrous sulfate showed a statistically significant difference.

Conclusions: The more days of exposure to ferrous sulphate syrup, the less the microhardness of the composite resin decreases; something similar occurs with the microhardness of Ketac Molar ionomeric cement when exposed to Paracetamol syrup. Meanwhile, the surface roughness of the composite resin and Ketac Molar ionomeric cement increases considerably when exposed to ferrous sulphate. Key words:Ionomeric cement, Microhardness, Composite resins, Surface roughness.