Antibacterial Properties of Quercetin-Curcumin-Modified PMMA Denture Base Resin for Oral Surgical Site Applications:...

Surgical site infections (SSIs) remain a significant complication following oral and maxillofacial surgeries, largely due to bacterial adhesion on prosthetic materials, causing infections and delayed wound healing. Quercetin and Curcumin which are natural polyphenols have been reported to possess antioxidant and antibacterial potentials. This study investigated the antibacterial effects of incorporating a quercetin-curcumin (QC) complex into heat-cured polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) resins against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in vitro. Disc-shaped PMMA specimens (8 mm × 2 mm) were fabricated with neat PMMA and 2% and 3% QC complex at 3:1 ratio. Antibacterial activity was assessed by initially using disc diffusion to optimize the QC concentration, followed by colony-forming unit (CFU) counts with QC incorporated into the PMMA. Statistical analysis was performed using Kruskal-Wallis tests, with significance set at p  < 0.05. The disc diffusion assay revealed inhibition although not statistically significant (p  > 0.05) with increasing QC concentration. At 3 wt% QC, inhibition zones reached 8 mm for S. aureus and 2 mm for P. aeruginosa, however, no inhibition in the negative controls. CFU counts showed a fluctuating trend with S. aureus viability declining at 2 wt% of QC as opposed to that of P. aeruginosa which showed a consistent decrease in viability with increasing QC concentration even though this difference not statistically significant (p  > 0.05). A 3 wt% QC in PMMA exhibited encouraging antibacterial activity, particularly against P. aeruginosa, suggesting its potential utility for prosthetic rehabilitation in oral and maxillofacial surgery; however, additional studies are required to confirm its efficacy and clinical applicability.