Impact of silica nanoparticles incorporation on the properties of resin infiltration: an in vitro study

Abstract Background This study evaluated the effect of nano-silica (NS) incorporation with resin infiltrant on water sorption and solubility of resin infiltrant, mineral density of demineralized enamel, and resin tags penetration. Methods NS (Sigma-Aldrich, St Louis, Missouri, USA) was added into the resin infiltrant (ICON, DMG, Hamburg, Germany) at two concentrations by weight. The tested groups were: ICON (control), ICON + 0.2, and ICON + 0.5 (n = 10 per group). Water sorption and solubility were assessed using mass variation after 60 days water storage. Mineral density and surface topography were assessed using micro-Computed Tomography scans. Resin tags penetration was measured using a scanning electron microscope. Data were analyzed using one-way Analysis of Variance and Tukey’s post-hoc tests (P < .05). Results ICON revealed the highest water sorption, solubility mean values (28.90, 7.61) followed by ICON + 0.2 (14.80, 4.82) and ICON + 0.5 (12.32, 0.81) respectively, and vice versa for resin tags penetration. Mineral density of demineralized enamel significantly increased after treatment with ICON + 0.2 and ICON + 0.5. Conclusion Incorporation of NS to resin infiltrant decreased its water sorption and solubility along with enhancing the mineral density of the demineralized enamel and the penetration of resin tags.