The formation of stain on acrylic surfaces by the interaction of cationic antiseptic mouthwashes and tea.

Clinical and in vitro studies have implicated dietary components as major aetiological factors in staining of teeth and acrylic materials associated with chlorhexidine use, a local side effect not unique to this antiseptic. These experiments studied the precipitation and surface staining reactions of the cationic antiseptics alexidine, cetyl pyridinium chloride (CPC), chlorhexidine, and hexetidine, with the beverage tea. All of the antiseptics precipitated a standard tea solution and for alexidine and chlorhexidine acetate and gluconate, this was at concentrations greater than 100 mumol/L, for hexetidine greater than 200 mumol/L, and for CPC greater than 400 mumol/L. With the exception of CPC precipitation was reduced with decreasing pH and for chlorhexidine was inhibited below pH 3. The addition of polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) to the antiseptic solutions increased the precipitation concentrations by an amount calculated to be adsorbed by polymer. Acrylic blocks treated with equimolar solutions of the antiseptics became progressively and significantly more stained by tea than control specimens over a 5-day period. Alexidine induced significantly greater staining and hexetidine significantly less than the other antiseptics. Staining was pH dependent and significantly reduced as the pH decreased. Both stain and precipitates were insoluble in strong acids and alkalis. It is concluded that staining observed clinically may represent a precipitation reaction with the complexing of antiseptics with dietary chromogenic material.