Abstract
Aim: The aim of this article was to analyze the influence of Saudi Arabia climate on the mechanical characteristics of two room-temperature (RV)- and heat-temperature-vulcanized (HV) medical silicone materials. Materials and Methods: In this in vitro study, 160 specimens of four different elastomeric materials, two RV (A-2000 and A-2186) and two HV (TechSil S-25 and Cosmesil M-511), were exposed to natural weather of Jouf Area in Saudi Arabia for 6 months. The mechanical tests, including tear resistance, tensile strength, and percentage of elongation, were performed using a universal testing machine. A t-test and analysis of variance followed by a post hoc test with alpha<0.05 were used to analyze the results. Results: The weather statistically influenced the mechanical properties of the silicone materials. A-2000 showed the highest tear resistance (37.34 +/- 2.36, P < 0.05). TechSil S-25 showed the highest tensile strength (57.34 +/- 1.92, P < 0.05) and percentage of elongation (888.20 +/- 13.83, P < 0.05). The least tensile strength and percentage of elongation were found in Cosmesil M-511 among all test specimens (P < 0.05). Conclusion: After 6 months of natural weathering in hot and dry climates, A-2000 exhibited the highest tear strength values among all test specimens, whereas TechSil S-25 achieved the best results for tensile strength and percentage of elongation.