Effect of pH and storage time on the elution of residual monomers from polymerized composites

pH varies in the oral environment and on tooth surfaces. The surface of a plaque covered resinous restoration has a low pH. In human dental plaque a number of acids are produced by bacterial metabolism. The predominant acids are acetic, propionic and lactic acids. These acids induced a surface swelling of restorative resin. The swelling cause formation of pores inside the resin matrix from which organic substances can be released, resulting in a mass loss. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively and quantitatively analyse the leached monomers of dental composites after storage in acetate buffer solution as a function of time by means of high performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) / mass spectrometer and further determine whether pH and time has any influence on the degradation behavior of composite restoration.(omitted)