Glass ionomer cements (GIC). One of the main
clinical advantages of GIC is their ability to bond
chemically to dentine and enamel without the use of the
acid-etch technique [Aboush and Jenkins, 1986], which
makes them less vulnerable to moisture. This, in
conjunction with active F release into the surrounding
enamel [Komatsu et al., 1986], has led to the
development and evaluation of GIC as an alternative FS
system, particularly in cases where moisture control is
difficult to achieve. Experiments have established that
the F release in distilled water is very high during the
first 24 hours (burst effect) and it drops rapidly during
the following 48 hours before reaching a relatively
constant level during the second week. This pattern of
F release is common for all the conventional and resin
modified GICs [De Moor et al., 1996; Grobler et al.,
1998].