Two-year results with box-only resin composite restorations.

One of the restorative alternatives in the treatment of proximal carious lesions is the box-only approach. This paper describes baseline and two-year results with 68 box-only resin composite restorations in a clinical study. The restorations were made using a glass ionomer cement as a dentin replacement and a bevelled outline. In terms of treatment time (32 minutes) and postoperative sensitivity (4 cases), the box-only restorations show favorable properties in comparison to conventional Class II resin composite restorations. At the two-year assessment no failures were observed, with fair results regarding clinical characteristics. It is concluded that, although applied to a limited number of teeth, the results indicate that the box-only approach with resin composites may make a contribution to the tooth-tissue-saving, restorative techniques.