A study of the antimicrobial properties of impression tray adhesives

Three impression tray adhesives were tested for their antimicrobial actions on three bacteria strains used for disinfectant studies. The colony forming unit (CFU) counts from plating the adhesive-exposed bacteria showed a significant reduction in number compared with the CFU of the controls. Statistical analyses confirmed the significant reduction (p < 0.05) for all but one test case. Proper infection control procedures should always be followed, but the added benefits of disinfection by impression tray adhesives can help prevent cross contamination.