Time-dependent visco-elastic creep and recovery of flowable composites

Creep behaviour of flowable composites was evaluated in relation to their filler fraction and the postcure period. Solid cylindrical specimens were prepared (4 × 6 mm) using steel moulds, with thorough light curing from multiple directions at 600 mW cm^-2. The specimens were divided into two groups (n = 3/material) as follows: group I, loaded 5 min after preparation; and group II, loaded after storage for 1 month in water at 37 ± 1°C. A constant compressive stress of 36 MPa was applied to each specimen for 2 h followed by removal of the weight for 2 h of strain recovery. Axial strain measurements were obtained continuously over the total analysis time of 4 h. The maximum creep strain ranged from 2.04 to 7.69% and from 1.03 to 6.12% for groups I and II, respectively. Flowables that had the highest percentage of filler produced the lowest creep strain. The creep response decreased with 1 month of preload storage. Clinically, the finding of this study suggests that flowable composites are unsuitable for stress-bearing areas.