Household products as sanitising agents in denture cleansing

Since a large percentage of denture wearers in South Africa make use of household products as denture cleansers, it was considered desirable to find a household product which can be used as a satisfactory sanitising agent in denture cleansing routines. Six subjects, each wearing an acrylic plate with removable plugs of a standard surface area, used a different solution in rotation as a disinfectant. The following solutions were tested: a 0.04 per cent hypochlorite + 0.66 per cent NaCl (4 per cent Milton), 0.012 per cent hypochlorite + 0.19 per cent NaCl (1.2 per cent Milton), 20 per cent NaCl, undiluted vinegar and 50 per cent diluted vinegar solutions. On completion of each experimental period the plugs were removed, visually inspected and viable bacterial counts were made. All solutions resulted in a significant (p < 0.01) reduction of viable bacteria compared to the tap water control. The sodium hypochlorite solutions were more effective sanitising solutions.