Depth of Cure Efficacy of High-power Curing Devices vs Traditional Halogen Lamps

To determine the depth of cure resulting from three different curing devices in a photoactivated microhybrid composite through high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of leachable monomers. Three different curing units, a halogen lamp (Heliolux, Vivadent), a xenon lamp (Kreative Kuring, Allyn Welch), and a plasma-arc lamp (Apollo 95, DMDS) were investigated using a universal microhybrid composite (P 60, 3M) as the test material. To assess the effect of curing device variation, a flexural strength test was performed. In addition, samples of composite were prepared and cured "in contact" (0 mm between the sample surface and light-guide tip) and through a specific thickness of composite (1, 2, or 3 mm). The monomers (bis-GMA and UDMA) eluted from the samples were detected by HPLC. No significant differences were found in the mechanical properties of composite cured with different light sources. In contrast, the concentration of eluted monomers (bis-GMA, UDMA) at a depth of 2 mm and more was significantly higher for the specimens cured with the high-power curing devices than those cured with the traditional halogen lamp. Under these experimental conditions, high-power curing devices were shown to be inferior in the deep polymerization of resin composite when compared to a traditional halogen lamp.