The aim of this study was to provide a critical review of the literature regarding factors that can interfere with microtensile test results for enamel and dentin adhesive systems. Primarily, reports in English, Spanish, or Portuguese that were published between July 1994 and September 2009 and are catalogued in MEDLINE and BBO were used. Additionally, we compiled relevant articles found in the references of these articles and dissertations and theses available in electronic databases of Brazilian universities that examined factors that can influence implementation of the microtensile test at each stage. The search strategy included searching for the following key term groups: microtensile and test; microtensile and assay; microtensile and test and parameters; microtensile and test and factors; microtensile and specimen; microtraccón and especimen. We reviewed 25 selected articles and found that they showed that even after adjustment of test parameters, changes found in the dentin could be responsible for variations observed amongst results. This influence could potentially be reduced by using the cohesive strength value of dentin adjacent to the adhesive interface as a standard for comparison, but more studies are needed to confirm whether such an approach would be reliable. Data analysis methodology should be taken into account when comparing studies.
Dental materials; Dentin-bonding agents; Materials testing; Tensile strength
