A denture cleaner (also termed denture cleanser) is used to clean

denture Dentures (also known as false teeth) are prosthetic devices constructed to replace missing teeth, and are supported by the surrounding soft and hard tissues of the oral cavity. Conventional dentures are removable ( removable partial denture or ...

s when they are out of the mouth. The main use is to control the growth of

microorganism A microorganism, or microbe,, ''mikros'', "small") and ''organism'' from the el, ὀργανισμός, ''organismós'', "organism"). It is usually written as a single word but is sometimes hyphenated (''micro-organism''), especially in olde ...

s on the dentures, especially ''

Candida albicans ''Candida albicans'' is an opportunistic pathogenic yeast that is a common member of the human gut flora. It can also survive outside the human body. It is detected in the gastrointestinal tract and mouth in 40–60% of healthy adults. It is usu ...

'', thereby preventing denture-related stomatitis. When dentures are worn in the mouth, a

biofilm A biofilm comprises any syntrophic consortium of microorganisms in which cells stick to each other and often also to a surface. These adherent cells become embedded within a slimy extracellular matrix that is composed of extracellular ...

develops which may be similar to

dental plaque Dental plaque is a biofilm of microorganisms (mostly bacteria, but also fungi) that grows on surfaces within the mouth. It is a sticky colorless deposit at first, but when it forms tartar, it is often brown or pale yellow. It is commonly found be ...

. It may become hardened and mineralized as

dental calculus In dentistry, calculus or tartar is a form of hardened dental plaque. It is caused by precipitation of minerals from saliva and gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) in plaque on the teeth. This process of precipitation kills the bacterial cells wit ...

. Denture cleansers are also used to remove stains and other debris that may be caused by diet, tobacco use, drinking coffee, drinking tea, etc. Some chemical denture cleaners can come in cream and liquid format. Others come in powder, paste, or tablet format. Some chemical denture cleaners are

effervescent Effervescence is the escape of gas from an aqueous solution and the foaming or fizzing that results from that release. The word effervescence is derived from the Latin verb ''fervere'' (to boil), preceded by the adverb ''ex''. It has the same lin ...

and others are not. There are also mechanical denture cleaners such as denture brushes and

ultrasonic Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hear it. This limit varies fr ...

denture cleaners that use

ultrasonic cleaning Ultrasonic cleaning is a process that uses ultrasound (usually from 20 to 40 kHz) to agitate a fluid, with a cleaning effect. Ultrasonic cleaners come in a variety of sizes, from small desktop units with an internal volume of less than , to larg ...

, some coupled with

ultraviolet light Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nanometer, nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 Hertz, PHz) to 400 nm (750 Hertz, THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than ...

Ingredients

Dilute

sodium hypochlorite Sodium hypochlorite (commonly known in a dilute solution as bleach) is an inorganic chemical compound with the formula NaOCl (or NaClO), comprising a sodium cation () and a hypochlorite anion (or ). It may also be viewed as the sodium s ...

(i.e. a mild bleach) is the main constituent of several brands of denture cleanser. Other ingredients include such chemicals as: * sodium bicarbonate – or baking soda, which alkalizes the water, cleaning the dentures *

citric acid Citric acid is an organic compound with the chemical formula HOC(CO2H)(CH2CO2H)2. It is a colorless weak organic acid. It occurs naturally in citrus fruits. In biochemistry, it is an intermediate in the citric acid cycle, which occurs in ...

– removes stains *

sodium perborate Sodium perborate is chemical compound whose chemical formula may be written , , or, more properly, ·. Its name is sometimes abbreviated as PBS (not to be confused with phosphate-buffered saline). The compound is commonly encountered in anhydr ...

* sodium polyphosphate * potassium monopersulfate – cleaning and bleaching agent *

EDTA Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) is an aminopolycarboxylic acid with the formula H2N(CH2CO2H)2sub>2. This white, water-soluble solid is widely used to bind to iron (Fe2+/Fe3+) and calcium ions (Ca2+), forming water-soluble complexes ev ...

Example commercial brands

* Sodium hypochlorite solution: Dentural, Milton, Mildent * Alkaline peroxides: Steradent * Other: Polident, Renew, Efferdent, Novadent

History

Dentures have been cleaned using water or mixtures of water/vinegar, water/lemon juice, water/baking soda for many years. In the 1930s, Alexander Block developed the Polident brand of denture cleaner at the

Block Drug Block Drug Company was a pharmaceutical company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, that specialized in dental care products. Its most popular products included Polident denture cleanser, Poli-Grip denture adhesive, Dentu-Creme dentur ...

Company. Others have followed such as Warner-Lambert's introduction of Efferdent denture cleanser tablets in 1966 and Renew denture cleaner powder in 1986 by Mid-Continental Dental Supply Co. Ltd. Over time, orthodontic and sport dental appliance cleaners have also emerged on the market such as Renew Ortho & Sport with formulations that account for thermoplastics and a younger demographic of patients.

Clinical trials and evidence

Studies have found an association between denture stomatitis, colonization of yeasts and denture cleanliness. Another study found that immersing dentures in 0.5% NaOCl solution for 3 minutes only can be an effective synergic for denture cleaning in reducing the number of microorganism without affecting the denture color or surface roughness, and when compared to alkaline peroxides, bleach was more efficient. Some clinicians recommended that the time of immersion, and the concentration of the NaOCl should be well considered so as not to degrade the acrylic resin of the denture.

References

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External links

Renew Denture CleanerRenew Ortho & Sport CleanerXodent Denture Cleaning KitMilton Denture Cleaner
Cleaning products Prosthodontology