Objectives. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of operator skill on microleakage in class V composite restorations. Materials and Methods. A total of 16 dentists and 25 dental students were enrolled, and 123 extracted teeth were allocated according to the adhesive being tested: Scotchbond Multipurpose, Adper Scotchbond 1 XT, and AdheSE. Each operator was asked to restore one tooth from each experimental group: two class V cavities were cut on each tooth and each adhesive was used on the same tooth before and after instructions for its use. After filling cavities with composite (Z100), the teeth were thermocycled. Results. For all of the tested adhesives, the mean microleakage score was lower for the dentists than for the students. The mean scores for the three tested adhesives were statistically similar before and after instructions for use. Conclusion. Our results indicate that the skill of the operator has a significant influence on microleakage.
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