Laboratory and clinical evaluation of uncomplicated fragment reattachment using pinholes

Purpose To evaluate laboratory and clinically the uncomplicated fragment reattachment using pinholes. Materials and Methods A total of 40 extracted human intact upper permanent central incisors with close similarity were selected and randomly divided into four groups (n = 10) according to the technique of reattachment. The incisal third of 30 specimens were sectioned horizontally. Group I: pinholes, group II: internal dentinal groove, group III: simple reattachment, and group IV (control group): intact teeth. Each fragment was reattached to its sectioned tooth using adhesive bond and resin cement. All specimens were tested for fracture strength under standard conditions in an Instron testing machine. The clinical study was performed on 20 patients, aged 8–16 years, presented with uncomplicated fragments of fractured upper central incisors, and divided into two groups (10 patients each). Group I: pinholes and group II: internal dentinal groove. All patients were followed‑up clinically and radiographically at 3, 6, 12, and 18 months. Data were analyzed using one‑way analysis of variance and post‑hoc test with the significant levelP less than 0.05. Results The laboratory study showed that the control group recorded the high strength value followed by pinholes, internal groove, and simple reattachment and the difference was statistically significant. However, the clinical results showed no significant differences between the two techniques. Conclusion It was concluded that the pinholes technique had only a significant effect on fragment reattachment success in the in‑vitro study.