Background: This study aimed to evaluate the surface details reproduction of hydrophilic polyvinyl siloxane (PVS), polyether (PE), and vinyl siloxanether (VSE) elastomeric impression materials in both dry and wet conditions. Methods: A total of 84 impression specimens were made using a standardized stainless steel test block according to American Dental Association specification No. 19 for elastomeric dental impression materials and divided into 3 study groups (I, II, and III) according to the impression material used, 28 for each, each group was further divided into 2 subgroups (A and B) for the dry and wet conditions, respectively. Surface details reproduction for each specimen was evaluated by two examiners visually using an x10 magnifier to confirm the presence of the 0.020 mm ruled line. Results: For the specimens made in the dry conditions and when comparing using Chi-square test for statistical analysis, it was found that there were no statistically significant differences ( P > 0.05) among all the groups, while for the specimens made in the wet conditions and when comparing between each two groups, it was found that there were statistically significant differences at P ≤ 0.05 between surface details reproduction of groups I and II (P1 = 0.005) and also between groups II and III (P2 = 0.031) but there were no significant differences between groups I and III (P1 = 0.299). Conclusions: VSE, PVS, and PE can effectively reproduce surface details according to international standards but for challenging moisture control situations, VSE and PE are preferred due to their hydrophilic properties.
Moataz Mohamed Amin Barakat (Sun,) studied this question.