Histological, microbiological and haematological investigations in denture-induced stomatitis

Biopsy specimens of palatal mucosa from 10 edentulous female subjects exhibiting the signs of chronic atrophic denture-induced stomatitis were fixed and processed to produce sections which were quantitatively analysed by light microscopy. The type and degree of surface keratinization, the epithelial thickness and basement membrane morphology were assessed. Microbiological and haematological evaluations were related to the histological findings. It was found that within this clinical entity of palatal inflammation there was considerable variation in tissue response at a cellular level, and that the numbers of organisms associated with the inflammatory reaction appeared to be fewer in patients with abnormal haematological status.