Avaliação da radiopacidade dos cimentos MTA angelus® branco, MTA repair HP e biodentine por meio de radiografia digital

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the radiopacities of MTA Angelus white (MTA B), MTA Repair HP (MTA HP) and Biodentine (BD) cements and compare them with those of human dental structures, by digital radiography. For this purpose, five specimens were made, with 4 mm in diameter and 2 mm in height, for each studied cement. Each sample was radiographed by the digital method, along with a 2 mm thick slice of a healthy lower human molar tooth and an aluminum density scale (Al), ranging from 2 to 16 mm, in increments of 2 mm per step. The exposure time as well as the focus-film distance were standardized for all exposures. For each set, three images were obtained and evaluated for densities using the histogram tool of the ImageJ software. In each evaluated structure: enamel, dentin, MTA B, MTA HP, BD and the steps of the density scale, a region of pre-defined interest was used and the densities were presented using means, standard deviations and medians. To assess the normality of the data and compare the radiopacity of the three cements tested, the Shapiro-Wilk and Kruskal-Wallis tests were applied, respectively. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) program was used with a significance level of 5% (p ≤ 0.05). After the analysis of the different structures, a radiopacity equivalent to 2 mm Al for the first and 1 mm Al for the second was observed for the enamel and dentin. The Kruskal-Wallis test did not show any significant difference between the densities of the MTA B and MTA HP cements tested, since both had radiopacity equivalent to 3 mm of Al. However, the BD cement showed a radiopacity significantly lower than the other tested materials , equivalent to 2 mm of Al. Thus, it is suggested that both MTA B and MTA HP presented radiopacities in accordance with the standards of the International Organization for Standardization 6876/2001 and American National Standard Institute number 57, in contrast to BD, which demonstrated lower radio-density and not compatible with the regulation.