Candida albicans adherence and proliferation on the surface of denture base materials.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the adhesion and proliferation of Candida albicans on denture base materials with different resin chemistries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Standardised specimens were prepared from different denture base materials (i.e. Palapress vario, Paladon 65, Castdon, Sherapress, Eclipse and Mucopren) and subjected to thermal cycling to simulate an artificial ageing process. After the determination of surface roughness and surface free energy, Candida albicans adherence and proliferation on the surface of denture base materials were simulated by subsequent incubation with Candida albicans ATCC 10231 for either 24 h or 196 h with and without prior simulation of salivary pellicle formation. RESULTS: Regardless of the presence of a salivary pellicle or the incubation time, the results indicate that the proliferation of Candida albicans is significantly dependent on the material that is used for the fabrication of denture bases (p < 0.001). A significantly higher proliferation of Candida albicans was observed on the surface of denture base materials with the highest polar contribution to surface free energy (i.e. Eclipse, Mucopren), and this result supports the assumption that there might be a relationship between the polar contribution to surface free energy of the substratum material and Candida albicans proliferation. CONCLUSION: The results obtained from this study indicate that Candida albicans proliferation in particular is not necessarily increased on denture base materials that are subjected to thermal cycling.