ASSOCIATION OF PATHOLOGICAL ACTIVITY OF ORAL CANDIDA AND DENTURE WEARING HABIT IN DENTURE WEARERS

Objective: To assess the effect of denture wearing on oral candidal activity through candida selective medium inoculated with standardized dilution salivary samples obtained from denture wearers. Methodology: A cross sectional, comparative study during March-September 2007 was conducted at Khyber College of Dentistry Peshawar. Using a structured proforma, data were collected from 50 subjects (50 Denture wearers). Stimulated salivary samples were collected from each subject. One ml of standard dilution saliva was mixed with 4ml sterile liquid candida –selective medium. The extent of candida activity was then determined, biochemically, through change in pH of the medium 24hrs after inoculation and incubation at 37 C. Results: Pathological candidal activity was seen in denture wearers. However, the association between the denture wearing habit and candidal activity was found significant, meaning that continuous denture wearing always showed a high pH change (t- value of 0.01) and mean pH decrease of 2.2 in continuous denture wearers as compare to 1.6 in only day time wearers. Beside this denture plaque score, type of dentures and denture hygiene maintenance was found to have insignificant association with the candidal activity. Conclusion: Within the limits of this study, denture wearing significantly enhanced the pathogenic activity of oral candida. The importance of rest to denture supporting tissue is re-emphasized