The overall goal of this experiment is to evaluate the effect of the new MPC polymer coating to prevent denture plaque deposition. This means that it can help answer key questions in the field of oral health care of the elderly population, such as how we can improve their denture hygiene. The main advantage of this technique is that dental clinicians do not have to prepare any specialized equipment, and it can be performed in a clinical office within two minutes.
Implications of this technique, extend to the prevention of a variety of denture associated health problems, such as periodontal disease, denture stomatitis, and aspiration pneumonia. This method can provide insight into the simple and quick treatment of MPC polymer for complete dentures. It can also be applied to medical devices, for orthopedics.
To begin the experiment, obtain the previously synthesized PMBPAz polymer. Synthesize the chilled photoreactive MPC polymer, PMBPAz, using conventional radical polymerization of MPC, BMA, and MPAz. Allow the PMBPAz ethanol solution to stand for 30 minutes at room temperature, before treating the PMMA surface.
Using a denture brush, mechanically clean the denture for three minutes. Then, chemically clean the denture for five minutes in an ultrasonic bath sonicator, with a denture cleaner containing 2.0 percent sodium hypochloride. Before performing the surface modification with PMBPAz, wash the denture surface by immersion in ethanol.
After the ethanol wash, allow the surface to air dry for one minute. Prepare one milliliter of 0.5 percent weight PMBPAz ethanol solution, from the previously prepared stock, and then let stand to allow the ethanol to evaporate. Next, with a brush applicator, apply the PMBPAz ethanol solution directly to the entire surface of the denture.
Keep the denture at room temperature, and add atmospheric pressure for 10 minutes, to allow the solvent to evaporate in an ethanol vapor atmosphere. Irradiate the denture surface with UV light. Then immerse the PMBPAz-treated denture in distilled water for five minutes before use.
Collect the denture that a patient has used for two weeks. Rinse the denture with tap water to remove any loose food particles, and then stain the denture with a 0.25 percent methylene blue disclosing solution for one minute in a polypropylene container. Clean any stains present on the denture surface in distilled water, using an ultrasonic bath sonicator.
Next, prepare imaging to capture images at a 90 degree angle, on a wax seat, with a digital camera, with a white light system. Obtain images from three different directions to get mucosal, right, and left polished surface images. Then calculate the stained area, and quantify it using an image analysis software, for the entire denture surface.
Select the denture area using the magnetic lasso tool, from the captured denture image. Next, change the red-colored channel to highlight the plaque area from the denture area image. Using the magic wand tool, and the select similar tool, select all plaque areas with a tolerance level of eight in the denture area.
Count the total number of pixels for each image, then calculate the percentage plaque index of the area covered on the denture, from the pixel count of these images. Finally, evaluate the statistical differences between the stained areas on the PMBPAz-treated and untreated dentures. The total denture area of the mucosal surface after staining and digitization of both untreated, and the plaque area of the mucosal surface after selection, reveal that the stained plaque areas were consistently and markedly decreased by PMBPAz treatment.
The mean percentages of the number of plaque pixels on the mucosal and polished surfaces of untreated and PMBPAz-treated dentures demonstrate that PMBPAz treatment of the mucosal and polished surfaces significantly inhibited the deposition of denture plaque. The development of this technique paved a new path for researchers to explore efficient and practical methods to prevent plaque-associated infections. Once mastered, this technique can be done in 30 minutes, if it is performed properly.
After watching this video, you should have a good understanding of how to prevent opportunistic infections associated with denture plaque accumulation.
