A review of fiber-reinforced denture base resins.

PURPOSE

One method of reinforcing denture base material is to use fiber composite reinforcement. Different types of fibers, such as glass (GF), carbon/graphite, aramid, and ultrahigh-modulus polyethylene (UHMP) fibers have been tested for this purpose.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This article reviews the studies conducted on the fiber-reinforced denture base resin systems.

RESULTS

The literature has reported that the fiber concentration and its adhesion to polymer matrix influences the transverse strength of the fiber composite. The highest transverse strength value (265 MPa) with polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) was obtained by incorporating 58 wt% GF into the resin. UHMP fibers incorporated into PMMA resin yielded the highest impact strength value (134 kJm-2) of the fiber-PMMA composites.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the improved mechanical properties of fiber-reinforced denture materials, further research is required to show the clinical usefulness of the fiber reinforcement.