Evaluation of the Shear Bond Strength and Antibacterial Activity of Orthodontic Adhesive Containing Silver Nanoparticle, an In-Vitro Study

This study evaluated the effect of incorporating silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) into conventional orthodontic adhesive on its antibacterial activity and the shear bond strength (SBS) to stainless steel orthodontic brackets. Thirty-four extracted premolars were randomly allocated into two groups (n = 17). Orthodontic adhesive (Transbond XT, 3M Unitek) was blended with AgNPs (50 nm, 0.3% w/w) to form a nano-adhesive. In order to bond stainless steel twin brackets (0.022-inch, American Orthodontics), Transbond XT (n = 17) and nano-adhesive (n = 17) were used in each group, respectively, after acid etching (37% phosphoric acid, 30 s) and rinsing with water (15 s). SBS and the adhesive remnant index (ARI) scores were recorded. Antibacterial activity against Streptococcus mutans in both groups after 24 h and 30 days was assessed (Disc agar diffusion test) and the inhibition zone diameter around each specimen was measured and recorded. Adding AgNPs significantly (p = 0.009) reduced the mean (SD) SBS in the nano-adhesive group [10.51(7.15) MPa] compared to Transbond XT [17.72(10.55) MPa]. The ARI scores on the Transbond XT and nano-adhesive showed no statistically significant difference (p = 0.322). Nano-adhesive with AgNPs showed significant antibacterial activity against Streptococcus mutans at 24 h and 30 days (p < 0.001). In both groups, no significant decline in the zones of inhibition was detected after 30 days (p = 0.907). The findings suggest that SBS decreased after incorporation of AgNPs [0.3% (w/w)], but was still above the recommended SBS of 5.9–7.8 MPa. The nano-adhesive showed significant antibacterial activity which did not change much after 30 days.