FRACTURE RESISTANCE OF MOLARS WITH MOD CAVITES RESTORED WITH DIFFERENT COMPOSITE RESTORATIONS - AN INVITRO STUDY

The present study aimed to compare and assess the fracture resistance of fiber reinforced and nanohybrid composite in extensive class II (MOD) cavities. Sixty molar teeth were divided into four groups of fifteen teeth each. Except for the control group (Group1), MOD cavities were prepared on the other groups (Groups 2,3,4) and the prepared cavities were restored in groups 3 and 4 with fiber reinforced and nanohybrid composites respectively. Teeth from all four groups were subjected to a shear load test and their fracture resistance was recorded. Cavities restored with fiber reinforced composites had significantly higher fracture resistance when compared to those with nanohybrid composites. Teeth without any preparation (Group 1) had the highest fracture resistance among the four groups, followed by the teeth restored with fiber reinforced composite. When used to restore MOD cavity preparation, the fiber reinforced composite could resist fracture better than the nanohybrid composite.