Evaluation of Denture care and Denture hygiene habits of patients using removable partial denture seen in a Tertiary dental centre, Ikeja, Lagos State Nigeria

Introduction: Tooth loss demands the use of removable partial denture(RPD) to improve aesthetics, functional and psychological problems. The denture must be well designed and fabricated to benefit patients for a long time. The study aims to evaluate the relationship of denture care, denture hygiene habits and practices among denture wearers. 

Methodology: The study was a cross-sectional survey carried out in the Prosthodontic department of a tertiary hospital. Sample population selection involved the use of convenience sampling method. Self-administered questionnaire was used for the participants. The denture hygiene was assessed by ranking using good, fair and poor categories. The data was collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics. The level of significance was set at <0.05.

Result:  The denture cleanliness was good in 58(60.4%) of the participants and moderate in 38(39.6%). Most of the participants 80(83.3%) were given instructions on the cleanliness of their denture. The frequency of cleaning the denture was once daily in 69(71.9%), and twice daily in 20(20.8%) of the participants. The method of cleaning their dentures varied from toothbrush and paste 54(56.2%), toothbrush and mild soap 28(29.2%), and denture cleaning tablets 8(8.3%), 

Conclusion: In this study, none of the participants had poor prosthesis cleanliness. Most individuals used a toothbrush and toothpaste to clean their device, although combining mechanical and chemical cleaning is typically reported to be the optimal method. Patients’ education and motivation are crucial for successful denture maintenance. It is very important to provide enough information and give instructions on the maintenance and storage of their dentures.