Surface treatment agent for dental metals using a thiirane monomer and a phosphoric acid monomer.

To develop a new surface treatment agent which improves the bond strength of adhesive resin to both non-precious and precious metals, experimental treatment agents containing both an adhesive bonding promoter for precious metals and one for non-precious metals were prepared by dissolving epithioalkyl methacrylate (EP3MA or EP8MA) and 10-methacryloyloxydecyl dihydrogen phosphate (MDP) in acetone. The surfaces of dental metals were treated by the treatment agents and metal specimens were butt-jointed together with MMA-PMMA resins. After 2,000 thermal cyclings in water at temperatures of 4 and 60 degrees C, tensile bond strengths were measured. The effectiveness of surface treatments was evaluated by tensile bond strengths and microscopic failure mode analysis after the tensile test. The combined treatment of EP3MA-MDP or EP8MA-MDP was used effectively for non-precious metals as well as precious metals, and was shown to be extremely effective compared with the single treatment of EP3MA, EP8MA, or MDP.