Over the last years, diverse commercial resin-based composites have dominated as dental filling materials. The purpose of the present study was to determine organic and inorganic eluates from five restorative materials using GC/MS and ICP–OES and to compare the effect on cell survival of human gingival fibroblasts of a conventional and a bioactive resin. Five commercially available restorative materials were employed for this study: Activa^TM Bioactive Restorative, ENA HRi, Enamel plus HRi Biofunction, Fuji II LC Capsule, and Fuji IX Capsule. Disks that were polymerized with a curing LED light or left to set were immersed in: 1 mL methanol or artificial saliva for GC/MS analysis, 5mL deionized water for ICP–OES, and 5mL of culture medium for cell viability. Cell viability was investigated with a modified staining sulforhodamine B assay.The following organic substances were detected: ACP, BHT, BPA, 1,4-BDDMA, CQ, DBP, DMABEE, HEMA, MCE, MeHQ, MOPA, MS, TMPTMA, and TPSb and the ions silicon, aluminum, calcium, sodium, and barium. Activa Bioactive Restorative was found to be biocompatible. Elution of organic substances depended on material’s composition, the nature of the solvent and the storage time. Ions’ release depended on material’s composition and storage time. The newly introduced bioactive restorative was found to be more biocompatible.

A great number of different types of materials have been used in dentistry as intermediate restoratives. Among them, new resin-based bases have been released in the dental market. The present study focuses on the identification of the organic eluates released from such materials and the study of their surface microstructure in combination with their corresponding elemental composition. For this purpose, the following materials were used:ACTIVA™BioACTIVE-BASE/LINER™, Ketac™Bond Glass Ionomer, SDR™ and Vitrebond™Light Cure Glass Ionomer Liner/Base. Methanolic leachates derived from polymerized materials were analyzed by means of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Scanning electron microscopy(SEM) was used for the surface monitoring of suitably prepared specimens. The GC-MS analysis revealed the elution of twenty different substances from the three resin-based materials, while none was eluted from the glass ionomer base. The SEM analysis for Vitrebond™ presented small pits, the one for Ketac™Bond presented elongated cracks, while no voids were present for ACTIVA™BioACTIVE-BASE/LINER™ and SDR™. Moreover, the resin matrix of some dental materials may inhibit elements’ accumulation on the surface layers. Particularly, the detected organic eluents may be related to potential toxic effects.