Effervescent tablets and ultrasonic devices against Candida and mutans streptococci in denture biofilm.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the antimicrobial action of effervescent tablets and ultrasound on Candida spp. and mutans streptococci from denture biofilm.


BACKGROUND
It is not uncommon for edentulous patients to be elderly and find it difficult to brush their dentures. Hence, auxiliary methods are required for cleansing dentures as well as treating oral infections.


METHODS
Seventy-seven complete denture wearers were randomly assigned into four groups: (A) Brushing with water (control); (B) Effervescent tablets; (C) Ultrasonic device (Ultrasonic Cleaner, model 2840 D); (D) Effervescent tablets and ultrasonic device. All groups brushed their dentures with a specific brush and water, three times a day, before applying their treatments. Denture biofilm was collected at baseline and after 21 days. The samples were collected by brushing the dentures with saline and the detached microbial cells were quantified by plating. Counts [log (CFU+1) ml(-1) ] of total aerobes, Candida spp. and mutans streptococci were compared by one-way anova or Kruskal-Wallis test (α = 0.05).


RESULTS
No significant difference was found among the methods from C. albicans (p = 0.76), C. tropicalis (p = 0.94) and C. glabrata (p = 0.80). Lower counts were found for methods B and D when compared with the other methods against mutans streptococci (p < 0.001). Method B showed lower total aerobic counts than A, whereas C and D showed intermediate results (p = 0.011).


CONCLUSIONS
The effervescent tablets significantly reduced mutans streptococci and total aerobes from denture biofilm. However, they was not as effective against C. albicans. Ultrasonic cleansing presented a discrete antimicrobial effect and was less effective than the tablets for complete denture disinfection.
Department of Dental Materials and Prosthodontics, Ribeirão Preto School of Dentistry, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. ingridma76@yahoo.com.br
Ingrid Machado
IM
de Andrade
Patricia Costa
PC
Cruz
Cláudia Helena Lovato
CH
da Silva
Raphael Freitas
RF
de Souza
Helena de Freitas Oliveira
Hde F
Paranhos
Regina Célia
RC
Candido
Jose Moacyr
JM
Marin
Maria Cristina Monteiro
MC
de Souza-Gugelmin
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D018441:Biofilms; D001881:Borates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002175:Candida; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D003820:Denture Cleansers / Q000494:pharmacology; D003778:Dentures / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013295:Streptococcus mutans; D014464:Ultrasonic Therapy
D001881:Borates; D003820:Denture Cleansers; C027707:sodium perborate