The success and failure of denture soft-lining materials in clinical use

There is ample evidence for the clinical success of soft-lining materials, but their use is often discouraged because of reported inadequate physical properties. The desire to correlate properties determined under simulated clinical conditions in the laboratory with success and failure of denture soft-lining materials in clinical use stimulated the present study, the objectives of which were:

1. 1. A retrospective study of the clinical success of existing soft-lining materials.

2. 2. The collection and measurement of data relating to a group of edentulous patients wearing soft-lined mandibular dentures.

3. 3. A longitudinal study of the clinical success of both existing and new soft-lining materials over a three-year period.

This investigation has been in progress for 18 months, and this paper comprises a report of the retrospective study together with preliminary results associated with other objectives. Despite the ability of the subjects to remove their dentures from the mouth for inspection they were generally unaware of the condition of the soft lining and assessed its success in terms of comfort and functional effectiveness. From this perspective soft-lining materials could be considered successful, but the clinical examination gives a much less satisfactory assessment.