Effect of different mouthwash solutions on the surface morphology, nanohardness and flexural modulus of nickel-titanium orthodontic wire

Objective: This laboratory study aimed to evaluate the effect of different mouthwash solutions on the surface and mechanical properties of NiTi arch wire. Methods: This experimental study was conducted at the Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Saudi Arabia from September 2023 to November 2023. A 30 mm NiTi wires in length with 0.017 × 0.022” in dimensions were selected and equally divided into four groups: Control (G0) group wires were immersed in distilled water (DW); G1 wires were immersed in antiseptic mouthwash; G2 wires were immersed in fluoridated mouthwash; and G3 wires were immersed in therapeutic mouthwash. Surface morphology, nanohardness, and flexural modulus were evaluated at 24-hours, four weeks, and eight weeks’ time points. Data were statistically analyzed using a two-way analysis of variance (P<0.05). Results: The arch wires immersed in DW showed insignificant effects on surface roughness, nanohardness, and flexural modulus at different time points. However, all the experimental groups showed a significant effect of time and immersion solutions on the said properties (P<0.05). At the end of eight weeks, G3 showed the highest surface roughness (0.346 ± 0.032 µm) and the lowest nanohardness (1.350 ± 0.412 GPa) and flexural modulus (3.960 ± 0.140 MPa) compared to other study groups. Conclusions: The efficiency of tooth realignment could be influenced by the detrimental influence of fluoride and hydrogen peroxide mouthwash solutions on superelastic NiTi arch wires. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.40.9.9428 How to cite this: Sawan NM, Gassem AAB. Effect of different mouthwash solutions on the surface morphology, nanohardness and flexural modulus of nickel-titanium orthodontic wire . Pak J Med Sci. 2024;40(9):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.40.9.9428 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.