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This book covers both basic scientific and clinically relevant aspects of dental composite materials with a view to meeting the needs of researchers and practitioners. Following an introduction on their development, the composition of contemporary composites is analyzed. A chapter on polymerization explains the setting reactions and light sources available for light-cured composites. The quality of monomer-to-polymer conversion is a key factor for material properties. Polymerization shrinkage along with the associated stress remains among the most challenging issues regarding composite restorations. A new classification of dental composites is proposed to offer more clinically relevant ways of differentiating between commercially available materials. A review of specific types of composites provides an insight into their key issues. The potential biological issues of dental composites are reviewed in chapters on elution of leachable substances and cariogenicity of resin monomers. Clinical sections focus on material placement, finishing procedures, and the esthetics and clinical longevity of composite restorations. Bonding to tooth tissues is addressed in a separate chapter, as is the efficiency of various composite repair methods. The final chapter discusses future perspectives on dental composite materials.

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Development of dental composites. Composition: Monomers.- Initiators.- Fillers.- Silane. Polymerization: Reaction.- Light-sources.- Degree of conversion/cure.- Shrinkage and stress. Classification: Composition.- Consistency.- Fillers. Properties: Mechanical.- Esthetic.- Biological. Clinical considerations: Placement techniques.- Curing protocols.- Finishing and polishing.- Secondary caries.- Repair.- Clinical longevity. Future perspectives.

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Vesna Miletic, BDS, MSc, PhD, is Assistant Professor in the Department of Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics, University of Belgrade School of Medicine, Belgrade, Serbia. She gained her BDS in 2000 from the University of Belgrade School of Dental Medicine, where she went on to complete her MSc in 2005. She obtained her doctorate in 2010 from Edinburgh Postgraduate Dental Institute, the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK for a thesis on "Micro-Raman spectroscopic studies on the adhesive-dentine interface and the degree of conversion of dental adhesives". She subsequently worked as a postdoc in Edinburgh and at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium.
Dr. Miletic is an active member of the International Association for Dental Research and the Academy of Dental Materials.

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