The influence of saliva pH value on the retention and durability of bar-clip attachments

Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare the durability and retention of 4 types of attachments placed over computer aided design/computer aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) titanium bars when subjected to different pH conditions. MATERIALS AND METHODS. Four commercially available attachments were investigated: Hader Yellow, Hader Red, Ackerman Gold and Ackerman Stainless Steel. These attachments and Ackerman CAD/CAM titanium bars were placed in 2 vessels containing different artificial saliva solutions (pH 7/ pH 4) at 37 degrees C for one month to simulate corrosion conditions, and they were then subjected to mechanical testing (5400 cycles of insertion and removal). RESULTS. The results revealed that there were significant differences in the average values of insertion/removal force due to the pH (F (1, 24)=9.207, P<9.05) and the type of attachment (F (3, 24)=11.742, P<.05). CONCLUSION. More acidic pH values were found to have a negative influence on the retention capacity of the attachments.