Background and Aims : In this in vitro study, the long-term bond strength of a self-adhesive resin cement and conventional resin cements to human enamel and dentin was compared .

  Materials and Methods: 80 sections of intact human third molars were randomly assigned into eight groups according to the cement type [Rely X Unicem (RXU), Rely X ARC (RXA)], bond substrate (enamel, dentin) and the duration of water storage (24 h or 1 year). Rods of cements (0.75×1 mm) were prepared on the top surface of specimens using Tygon tubes. The micro-shear bond strengths of specimens were measured by a micro-tensile tester. Data were analyzed using Wilcoxon signed ranks and Mann Whitney tests ( α =0.05).

  Results: The bond strengths of RXA and RXU cements to enamel after 24h were 18.56±4.08 MPa and 14.99±4.17 MPa, and after 1 year were 19.41±6.24 MPa and 15.51±6.17 MPa, respectively. The bond strengths of RXA and RXU cements to dentin were 13.36±4.02 MPa and 14.16±4.69 MPa after 24h , and 14.63±5.96 MPa and 14.08±6.72 MPa after 1 year, respectively. Tooth substrate had significant effect only on the shear bond strength of RXA cement after 24h (P=0.01), while no other significant differences were found in this study (P>0.05).

  Conclusion: According to the results of this study, one-step self-adhesive and multi-step conventional resin cements were similarly effective in bonding to enamel and dentin after 1 year water storage.