Restoring proximal lesions in the primary dentition: is glass ionomer cement the material of choice?

Abstract

Adhesive dental materials are now routinely used in paediatric dentistry to restore the proximal lesion. One of these materials, glass ionomer cement (GIC), has a number of advantages including ease of use, the release of fluoride, and acceptable aesthetics. These properties have led to GIC becoming one of the most widely used materials in Australasia in the paediatric population. Although there are a number of advantages for the use of GIC in the primary dentition the drive towards evidence based dentistry requires us to ask the question--is GIC the material of choice for class II restorations in primary molars? This article describes the advantages and disadvantages in the use of the different types of GIC in the primary dentition and compares its success in this group with other dental materials commonly used in class II restorations.