Changes in oral-microflora of patients with prosthesis on hygiene protocol

Objective: The aim of this study is to describe the palatal mucosa microbial flora of individuals with complete mucous-supported dentures, before and after introduction of an oral hygiene protocol. Methods: We observed 120 outpatients at Egas Moniz Dental Clinic, 60 of them complete denture wearers. Each patient was clinically examined and exclusively, the group of subjects with complete denture, was awarded a hygiene kit (dental prosthesis brush-Aquafresh, cleaning tablets and antibacterial foam- Corega®) along with a protocol that had to be used for 15 days. The material for microbiologic assays was obtained by single swab sampling, cultured on the blood, mitis salivarius, Chapman, Drigalsky and Candida ID agar over 24 – 72 hours, in aerobic and anaerobic conditions and identified. Results were analyzed by applying descriptive and inferential statistics procedures (Chi-square, Fisher and McNemar tests). Results: Of the 180 samples taken, 292 isolates were obtained. For bacterial morphotypes, it is noted that all patients have Gram + cocci. For Gram - bacilli, levels decrease after hygiene (16.7% to 10%). Species belonging to Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, Enterobacteriaceae and Candida were detected in all groups; Pseudomonas was only isolated in denture wearers previous hygiene protocol. Candida albicans was the most recovered specie in prothestic patients (p < 0.001). Concerning opportunistic bacteria and yeasts, there is a decrease after the introduction of the experimental protocol (16% to 8.7% and 70% to 51.7% respectively). Conclusions:There was proven efficiency in the cleaning protocol under study, causing a remarkable change in the bacterial microflora (p = 0.031) and yeast flora (p = 0.039) of the individuals with complete mucus-supported denture. Therefore, patients should be properly informed about the products and methods for proper oral hygiene and consequential increase of the prosthesis longevity.