Abstract
This study investigates the effects of enamel shapes and bracket configurations on the shear bond strength of a resin-modified glass ionomer cement. The shear bond strength was measured for the cement with which orthodontic brackets having curved and plane base surfaces were glued onto polished bovine, polished human and non-polished human enamels. The results showed no significant difference between human and bovine enamels and polished and non-polished ones. The shear bond strength of the cement between a plane bracket and bovine incisor reached more than doubled that between a non-polished human premolar and a curved bracket. This implies that the shape of the bracket-cement-enamel adhesion system, and the enamel shape especially, plays an important role in determining the shear bond strength of the orthodontic adhesives.
