Retention of quartz fiber posts using different luting cements

Objectives: To determine the effect on the pull-out strength of threads cut into the surface of quartz fiber post cemented with three luting materials. Methods: 42 human single-rooted, crownless teeth were treated endodontically and randomly assigned to six fiber posts groups: 1) to 3) were restored with Macro-Lock#3 posts (RTD); 4) to 6) with control posts made of the same material but lacking threads (RTD). The posts were cemented 12mm deep using Panavia(Kuraray), RelyX Unicem (3M ESPE), and Fuji Plus (GC) following the manufacturer instructions. The specimens were subjected to 5000 thermal cycles at 5 and 55°C and wet stored. Retentions were made on the emerging portion of the controls using a diamod bur, then a composite core was made using a mold. A pull-out stress was applied by clamping the core with an Instron machine (2mm/min speed). The pull-out strength was recorded for each group and compared (alpha=0.05). After the test, the specimens were observed under the stereomicroscope to determine failure patterns. Results: The Macro-Lock demonstrated higher retention with all the luting materials employed, statistically significant when RelyX and Fuji were used (P