1992 Volume 11 Issue 1 Pages 70-76,114
A study of the adhesive interface between 4-MET/MMA-TBB resin and hydroxyapatite or bovine enamel was reported. The present report is a continuation of that study. The possible chemical interaction between 4-methacryloxyethyl trimellitic acid (4-MET) and bovine or human dentin was examined by laser Raman spectroscopy. A 4-MET monomer solution was prepared by evaporating two thirds of the methyl methacrylate (MMA) in a commercial dentin adhesive. The solution was then applied to a dentin surface after treating the surface with an aqueous solution of 10% citric acid containing 3% ferric chloride. A salt formed on both bovine and human dentin surfaces. This salt was formed by the process we previously reported in which 4-MET formed a salt on the hydroxyapatite and bovine enamel. No evidence was observed of chemical reaction between 4-MET and any organic component in the dentin.