Agreement of Try-In Pastes and the Corresponding Luting

Composites on the Final Color of Ceramic Veneers

Binting Xu, DDS, PhD,1,∗ Xiaodong Chen, DDS, PhD,1,2,∗ Rong Li, DDS, PhD,1 Yining Wang, DDS, PhD,3
& Qing Li, DDS, PhD4
1
Postgraduate Student, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
2
Department of Prothodontics, Dalian Stomatological Hospital, Dalian, China
3
Professor, Director of Department of Prosthodontics, Key Laboratory for Oral Biomedical Engineering of Ministry of Education, School and Hospital
of Stomatology, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
4
Associate Professor, Key Laboratory for Oral Biomedical Engineering of Ministry of Education, School and Hospital of Stomatology, Wuhan
University, Wuhan, China

Keywords
Ceramic veneer; luting composite; try-in
paste; color difference.
Correspondence
Yining Wang or Qing Li, Key Laboratory for
Oral Biomedical Engineering of Ministry of
Education, School and Hospital of
Stomatology, Wuhan University, 237# Luoyu
Road, Wuhan, China. E-mail:
yiningwang@whuss.com or li.q@whu.edu.cn
∗
These authors contributed equally to this
study.
Supported by the Fundamental Research
Funds for the Central Universities (No.
201130402020002), China Postdoctoral
Science Foundation funded project (No.
20100480870), National Natural Science
Foundation of China (No. 81100784), and
National Natural Science Foundation of China
(No. 81070853).
The authors deny any conflicts of interest.
Abstract
Purpose: The aims of this study were to evaluate the influence of luting composites
on the final color of ceramic veneers and to investigate the color matching of try-in
pastes to the corresponding luting composites.
Materials and Methods: Ceramic discs (shade A3, 1.0 mm thick) were fabricated
and seated on composite specimens (shade A3) to mimic a complex of ceramic
veneer lying on dentin substrate. The try-in pastes and luting composites of 3M
RelyX were applied into the interlayer of the ceramic and composite specimens. The
colors of the complexes were measured using a spectrophotometer, and subsequently
converted to CIE L*a*b* values. Color changes after luting composites were applied,
and the changes between the try-in pastes and the corresponding luting composites
were calculated and registered as Eluting and Epaste-luting . Color measurements were
repeated while the ceramic specimens were reduced to 0.7 mm and then 0.5 mm in
thickness.
Results: The means of Eluting were 0.69 ± 0.21, 1.27 ± 0.48, and 1.40 ± 0.57
for the 1.0, 0.7, and 0.5 mm thicknesses, respectively. Two-way ANOVA revealed
that Epaste-luting values were significantly affected by the colors of luting composites
and veneer thickness (p < 0.001). Lighter shades of luting composites showed less
influence on Epaste-luting values.
Conclusions: Luting composites could slightly modify the final color of ceramic
veneers. Color matching of a try-in paste to the corresponding luting composite was
not always achieved in the 0.7 or 0.5 mm thicknesses.

Accepted July 10, 2013

doi: 10.1111/jopr.12109

Esthetic dentistry attaches importance to the conservation of
healthy tooth structure integrated with biologic and long-term
functional requirements. Since the first published article on
porcelain veneering,1 the ceramic laminate veneer has become
a popular technique for improving the appearance of anterior
teeth. This technique allows for less-aggressive tooth removal
than full coverage restorations and demonstrates excellent clin-
ical performance in terms of periodontal reaction and biocom-
patibility, which favor a healthy gingival response.2,3
To obtain a durable bonding strength for ceramic veneers,
tooth reduction should remain within the enamel layer, which
is described as 0.7 to 0.8 mm thick.2 As a result, ceramic lam-
inate veneers are ideally thin and relatively translucent. The
color of tooth substrate or luting composites might potentially
influence the final color of veneer restorations.4-6 It is essen-
tial to gain the approval of the patient before final cementation
takes place.7 However, it is a challenge for dentists to predict
the resultant color of ceramic veneers. Several approaches have
been described to mask discolored tooth substrate and adjust the
final appearance of the restorations. These approaches include
the application of more opaque porcelain8 or the use of differ-
ent colors of luting composites.9 An opaque ceramic layer will

308 Journal of Prosthodontics 23 (2014) 308–312 

C 2014 by the American College of Prosthodontists
Xu et al
compromise the esthetics of veneer restorations.2,10 Therefore,
the application of different color luting composites seems to be
a promising approach for adjusting the resultant color.11 Manu-
facturers have introduced several adhesive systems for ceramic
veneers, including various colors of luting composites and the
corresponding try-in pastes. They have claimed that the luting
composites of various shades could be used to modify the final
color of the veneers to attain color matching. The try-in pastes
could be used as indicators of the final color and as a guide to
choose an appropriate color of the luting composites; however,
there is no agreement in the literature about the influence of
the luting composites on the resultant color of ceramic veneers.
Moreover, controversial viewpoints, concerned about the color
agreement of try-in pastes and luting composites, have been
proposed. ALGhazali et al noted the clinically significant color
differences between a try-in paste and the luting composite of
the same shade.12 On the other hand, high agreement of the
try-in paste and the corresponding luting composite has also
been reported.13,14
The purposes of this study were to evaluate the influence of
the luting composites on the resultant color of ceramic veneers,
and to investigate color agreement of try-in pastes to the cor-
responding luting composites. The null hypotheses were that
there was no difference in the color of the final restorations
achieved using various shades of luting composites, and there
was no perceptible color difference between the try-in pastes
and the corresponding luting composites.
Materials and methods
Pressable lithium disilicate glass-ceramic discs (IPS e.max;
Ivoclar, Schaan, Liechtenstein) and composite specimens
(Amelogen Plus; Ultradent, South Jordan, UT) were fabricated
to represent ceramic veneers and backgrounds with various col-
ors. An adhesive system (RelyXTM Veneer; 3M ESPE, St. Paul,
MN) with five shades of try-in pastes and luting composites
(Translucent, B0.5, A1, A3, White Opaque) was included in
the study (Table 1).
Fabrication of ceramic veneers and
backgrounds
Disc-shaped ceramic specimens (nominal shade A3 to Vita
Lumin, 10 mm in diameter) were fabricated by the lost-wax
technique in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
Wet silicone carbide paper (600-, 800-, 1000-, 1500-grit) was
used to polish the specimens and achieve a thickness of 1.0
± 0.01 mm (n = 10) using a digital micrometer (Mitutoyo,
Tokyo, Japan). Finally, a self-glazing process was performed at
the manufacturer’s recommended temperature. No internal or
external staining was used in the fabrication procedure. Com-
posite discs (10 mm diameter, 4.0 mm thick, shade A3) were
fabricated and served as the background colors to mimic the
prepared dentin substrate. To avoid the color measurement er-
rors caused by the mismatched position, notches were cut in
the edge of each quarter of the specimens (Fig 1).
Journal of Prosthodontics 23 (2014) 308–312 
C 2014 by the American College of Prosthodontists
Validity of Try-In Paste as an Indicator for Veneer’s Color
Application of adhesive agents
The ceramic specimens were placed on the composite discs
with notches matched. Try-in pastes or the corresponding lut-
ing composites were applied between the ceramic and com-
posite specimens to build up the veneer/cement/background
complexes. The complexes were registered as TP group (try-in
paste) or LC group (luting composite) according to the adhe-
sive agents applied. Complexes with a refractive liquid (with
an index of refraction of 1.50) applied between the ceramic and
background to achieve the optical connection15 served as the
control group (baseline). Pressure (200 g) was applied on the
top surface of the ceramic veneers for 10 seconds. Then 40 sec-
onds of light curing was performed for the LC group. For the
convenience of the separation from the composite background,
the ceramic veneers were not acid etched, and no coupling agent
was used.
Color measurements
The color measurement apparatus consisted of a spectropho-
tometer (PR-650 Spectra Scan, equipped with MS-75 and SL-
0.5X lens; Photo Research, Chatsworth, GA) and two fiber
optic light cables. The optic light cables, positioned at a 45◦
angle right-and-left to the spectrophotometer, provided an op-
tical configuration of 0◦ observation and 45◦ illumination, rec-
ommended by Bolt et al for measuring the color of translu-
cent materials.16 The spectrophotometer was standardized to
91.4 mm from the measured object with a measurement aperture
size 1.5 mm in diameter. The standardized illumination source
D65 (Model OL 53; Optronic Laboratories, Orlando, FL) and
2◦ observer configuration were used. For the color measure-
ments, spectral reflectance was obtained from 380 to 780 nm
(2 nm interval) and subsequently converted to the CIE L*a*b*
values established by Commission International de L’Eclairage
(CIE).17 Before each session of measurement, the spectropho-
tometer was calibrated with a white reflectance standard tile
supplied by the manufacturer. A customized jig with a pointer
was used to hold the specimens and confirm the position of the
notches in the specimens (Fig 1). Color errors of 1-week re-
peated measurements using this instrumental measuring system
were less than 0.027 per E unit.18 After each measurement,
the veneer was separated from the composite background, and
both of the veneers and the composite backgrounds were pol-
ished using 1500-grit silicone carbide paper to remove the ad-
hesive layer. Then, an assembling procedure with another color
of luting agents was performed. After the first session of color
measurements, the veneers were decreased to 0.7 mm, and then
0.5 mm, in thickness. The color measurements were repeated.
Statistical analysis
Color differences between the control and LC groups (regis-
tered as Eluting ), or between TP and LC groups (registered as
Epaste-luting ) were determined by the equation: E = [(L*)2
+ (a*)2 + (b*)2 ]1/2 .19 Color parameters L*, a*, and
b* presented the differences in lightness, the green-red coor-
dinate, and the blue-yellow coordinate, respectively. Two-way
ANOVA was used to analyze the effects of veneer thickness
and luting composite color on Epaste-luting values. Tukey’s post
309
Validity of Try-In Paste as an Indicator for Veneer’s Color Xu et al

Table 1 All-ceramic veneer adhesive system used

Materials Shade Code Batch number Manufacturer

TM
RelyX Veneer Translucent TR 8CU, 8FJ 3M ESPE, St. Paul, MN
B0.5 B0.5 8BY, 8CW
A1 A1 8CA, 8EF
A3 A3 8BX, 8CT
White opaque WO 8CA, 8CX

Figure 1 Specimens on the positioning jig and color measuring system. (A) a: holder for specimens, b: ceramic veneer, c: pointer. (B) a: PR650
spectrophotometer, b: D65 light source, c: specimen on the jig.

Table 2 Means of Eluting values with different ceramic thickness Table 3 Two-way ANOVA results for the values of Epaste-luting

Thickness n Mean of Eluting (SD) Sum of Mean

a
Source squares df square F p
1.0 mm 50 0.69 (0.21)
0.7 mm 50 1.27 (0.48)b Veneer thickness
0.5 mm 50 1.40 (0.57)b (T) 1.147 2 0.573 32.771 <0.001
Luting composite
Different superscript letters indicate significant difference. color (L) 9.297 4 2.324 132.813 <0.001
T×L 4.940 8 0.617 35.285 <0.001
hoc comparisons were performed to evaluate the differences Error 0.787 45 0.017
among various luting composite colors. SPSS statistical soft-
ware (SPSS 13.0 for Windows, SPSS, Chicago, IL) was used
for the analysis. The level of significance was established at α were smaller than those in 0.7 mm. It indicated a better color
= 0.05. agreement between the try-in paste and the corresponding lut-
ing composite with thinner ceramic veneers. With respect to
Results the luting composite color, Epaste-luting values were less than
1.0 unit, when shades of TR, B0.5, and A1 were applied,
The means of Eluting were 0.69 ± 0.21, 1.27 ± 0.48, and whereas Epaste-luting values were beyond the imperceptible color
1.40 ± 0.57 for 1.0, 0.7, and 0.5 mm thicknesses, respectively limit (E* = 1.0), when A3 and WO shades were applied
(Table 2). ANOVA results revealed that Eluting values in group (Table 4). The results of Tukey’s post hoc comparisons showed
1.0 mm were significantly less than those of the 0.7 and 0.5 mm that Epaste-luting values for shades TR, B0.5, and A1 were less
groups. If E* < 1.0 unit were set as the imperceptible color than those of shades of A3 and WO. It indicated that lighter
change,20-22 it indicated that the luting composites could not color has better color agreement between the try-in paste and
produce a detectable color change in the veneers with 1.0 mm the corresponding luting composite (Table 4).
in thickness. Therefore, it is not necessary to investigate the
color agreement of try-in pastes and the corresponding luting Discussion
composites at a 1.0 mm thickness.
For 0.7- or 0.5-mm thick veneers, two-way ANOVA results The first null hypothesis that there was no perceptible differ-
revealed that Epaste-luting values were significantly affected ence in the color of the final restorations achieved using various
by the luting composite color and the thickness of veneer (p shades of luting composites was rejected, because the means of
< 0.001, Table 3). All of the Epaste-luting values for 0.5 mm Eluting were 1.27 ± 0.48 and 1.40 ± 0.57 for 0.7 and 0.5 mm

310 Journal of Prosthodontics 23 (2014) 308–312 

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Xu et al
Table 4 Tukey’s post hoc comparison results of the luting composite color on Epaste-luting values
Luting composite color 0.7 mm Tukey’s intervals
TR 0.81 ± 0.14 a 0.51 ± 0.08
B0.5 0.97 ± 0.16 a 0.62 ± 0.12
A1 0.91 ± 0.13 a 0.50 ± 0.11
A3 1.65 ± 0.16 b 1.21 ± 0.17
WO 2.12 ± 0.15
Columns with the same letter represent no significant difference among the groups.
thicknesses, respectively: within the perceptible color change.
The second null hypothesis that there was no perceptible dif-
ference between the color of try-in pastes and the correspond-
ing luting composites was rejected, because some values of
Epaste-luting were more than 1.0 unit, especially at the 0.5 mm
thickness.
In this study, the complexes of veneers, adhesive layer, and
different colors of resin substrates were used to mimic the
clinical practice of ceramic veneers. The thickness of the ad-
hesive layer is a sensitive parameter for color measurement. A
moderate pressure was loaded on the complexes to prevent the
formation of air bubbles within the inner layers, and to create a
uniform thickness of the adhesive layer. Considering the possi-
bility of a thin air layer occupying the interspace of veneer and
resin specimen, which would dramatically increase the varieties
of the color measurements, a refractive liquid was applied into
the interspace to get the optical connection,23,24 and the color
coordinates of the refractive liquid applied complexes were set
as baselines (control group).
If the value of E* < 1.0 unit is considered to be an imper-
ceptible color change, the mean of Eluting values did not go
beyond this limit when the ceramic veneer was 1.0 mm thick.
This means that there are no perceptible color changes after
the application of the luting composites; however, most of the
values of Eluting are more than 1.0 unit when the thickness
of the veneers decreased to 0.7 or 0.5 mm. This indicates that
the luting composites could slightly affect the resultant color of
the ceramic veneers while the thickness of veneers decreased.
A similar conclusion that the application of luting composites
could potentially mask the substrate color was drawn by Davis
et al.25 However, the influence of the luting composites on the
resultant color is not very strong. The possible explanation is
the extremely thin layer of luting composites. The colorant con-
centration in the adhesive layer could not obviously alter the
final color.
With respect to the agreement of the luting composites and
the corresponding try-in pastes, most of the complexes fell into
the range of imperceptible color change, except for two shades,
A3 and WO. All Epaste-luting values were below the clinically
unacceptable threshold of E* = 2.75 units;26 however, some
were highly above the perceptible limit and considered clini-
cally significant. It indicates that the color agreement of try-
in paste to the corresponding luting composite is not always
achieved.27 Tukey’s multiple comparisons results indicated that
WO composite represented the most significant influence on the
resultant color, consistent with the manufacturer’s instruction
that the opaque agent could slightly mask the severely discol-
Journal of Prosthodontics 23 (2014) 308–312 
C 2014 by the American College of Prosthodontists
Validity of Try-In Paste as an Indicator for Veneer’s Color
0.5 mm Tukey’s intervals
a
b
a
c
c 1.95 ± 0.18 d
ored substrate tooth tissue; however, the clinical application
of these shades of luting composites over intensely discolored
teeth needs further investigation.28
The limitations of this study included that uniform thickness
of the adhesive layer was an ideal configuration, which could
not be easily achieved in clinical practice. In addition, only
shade A3 ceramic was investigated in the study. Further inves-
tigation into the effect of various shades of ceramic veneers
will be conducted in our next study, and it is hoped to add to
the overall clinical picture.
Conclusion
Within the limitations of this study, the following conclusion
can be drawn: color agreement of try-in pastes and the corre-
sponding luting composites is not always achieved, especially
for the application of darker and more opaque agents.
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