Schoilew K, Fazeli S, Felten A, Sekundo C, Wolff D, Frese C. Clinical evaluation of bulk-fill and universal nanocomposites in class II cavities: Five-year results of a randomized clinical split-mouth trial. J Dent 2023; DOI: 10.1016/j.jdent.2022.104362.

Similar outcomes after five years in situ.

To overcome polymerisation shrinkage, composite restorative materials have classically been inserted in cavities in 2 mm increments, light curing each stage separately and generally accepted to be time-consuming and technique-sensitive. Newer bulk fill composites, however, can be inserted in one 4 mm layer, thus reducing clinical time. Long-term survival studies of newer materials are unusual.

This study compared two 3M products, FilTekSupreme Universal Restorative and FilTek Bulk Fill, in 60 patients (120 restorations). Patients needing two or more Class II cavities restored were treated by five calibrated dentists following a standardised treatment protocol. Each patient received two restorations, one of each material. After five years, four restorations in each material had failed. The authors conclude that: 'The use of bulk-fill resin composites seems to be an aesthetically, functionally and biologically satisfactory alternative (to universal composite) in the posterior dentition'.