The effects of two soft drinks on bond strength, bracket microleakage, and adhesive remnant on intact and sealed enamel

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of Coca-Cola and Schweppes Limón on bond strength, adhesive remnant, and microleakage beneath brackets. One hundred and twenty upper central incisor brackets were bonded to bovine incisors and divided into three groups: (1) Control, (2) Coca-Cola, and (3) Schweppes Limón. The teeth were submerged in the drinks three times a day for 15 minutes over a 15 day period. Shear bond strength (SBS) was measured with a universal testing machine, and adhesive remnant evaluated using image analysis equipment. Microleakage at the enamel-adhesive and adhesive-bracket interfaces was determined using methylene blue. One hundred and eight teeth were used for scanning electron microscopy to determine the effect of the drinks on intact and sealed enamel. SBS and adhesive remnant data were analysed using the Kruskal-Wallis test (P < 0.05) and microleakage using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests applying Bonferroni correction (P < 0.017). No significant differences were found in SBS and adhesive remnant between the groups (P > 0.05). Microleakage at the enamel-adhesive interface for groups 2 and 3 was significantly greater than for group 1 (P < 0.017). At the adhesive-bracket interface, microleakage was significantly greater in group 2 than in group 1 (P < 0.017) while microleakage in group 3 did not differ significantly from either group 1 or 2 (P < 0.017). The drinks produced enamel erosion, loss of adhesive and microleakage. Coca-Cola and Schweppes Limón did not affect the SBS of brackets or the adhesive remnant.