Abstract
Aim: To investigate the etching patterns of hypocalcified amelogenesis imperfecta (AI) in primary molars pretreated with 5.25% NaOCl prior to phosphoric acid application using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Study design: Ten hypocalcified AI primary molars were collected, sectioned longitudinally into 2 parts and allocated into two groups of ten specimens each. The enamel surface in the first group (control group) was etched using 37% phosphoric acid gel for 15 seconds; while in the second group (study group), it was pretreated using 5.25 sodium hypochlorite(NaOCl) for 60 seconds prior to acid etching. Each specimen was examined at 16 different sites, and evaluated for the etching pattern (types I, II, and III) distribution using SEM. A total of 320 microphotographs at 1,500 magnification were obtained using Auto-Cad 2007 software. Results: The etching pattern with phosphoric acid was not uniform with predominance of type III etching (65.63%), while the pretreated enamel surfaces showed a significant increase in type I and 11(82. 5%) etching patterns (P<0.001). Conclusion: Treatment of primary teeth affected by hypocalcified AI using 5.25% NaOCl prior to phosphoric acid etching significantly improves the etching pattern which is required for good resin bonding.