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Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical usefulness and durability of continuous glass-fiber reinforcement in repair of acrylic resin removable dentures., Materials and Methods: Fractured removable dentures without reinforcement, with conventional metal-wire reinforcement, or with mesh reinforcement were collected from two dental schools in Finland. The total number of dentures was 51 and the number of patients was 48. During the repair, the dentures were reinforced with a polymer-preimpregnated E-glass fiber at the region of the fracture. The fibers were used as partial fiber reinforcement, i.e., only the weakest part of the denture was reinforced. Follow-up time varied from 4 months to 4.1 years. After the follow-up period, possible fractures and discoloring were visually inspected. Possible irritation of oral mucosa by glass fibers and the general shape of the denture were also evaluated., Results: In 88% of the cases, there was no need for adjustment at the region of partial fiber reinforcement, and the clinical condition of the dentures was good. Glass fibers did not irritate the oral mucosa. In the case of refracture or hairline fracture, positioning of the partial fiber reinforcement was incorrect or the reinforcement had been used incorrectly (the wetting of the reinforcement with denture base resin was inadequate)., Conclusion: Polymer-preimpregnated partial fiber reinforcement seems to be useful in eliminating fractures of acrylic resin removable dentures. However, this study emphasizes the importance of correct positioning and accurate laboratory technique when partial fiber reinforcement is used.

The effect of fiber reinforcement of autopolymerizing poly(methyl methacrylate) was investigated. The impact strength of continuous E-glass fiber-poly(methyl methacrylate) composite was determined. Rectangular test specimens (n = 10 per group) were modified by incorporating an additional fiber reinforcement of untreated E-glass fibers, silanized E-glass fibers, or aramid fibers in the test specimens. Controls were either unreinforced or reinforced from the middle of the test specimen only. The impact strength of the specimens was measured by using a charpy-type pendulum impact tester after the specimens had been stored in water at 37 degrees C for 4 weeks. After the impact strength test, the length of the delamination of poly(methyl methacrylate) from the fibers was measured and plotted to the impact strength of the test specimens by using a linear regression model. The impact strength of unreinforced autopolymerizing poly(methyl methacrylate) was 7.8 kl/m2, while incorporation of glass fiber reinforcement with a fiber concentration of 12.4 wt% increased the impact strength to 74.7 kl/m2 (P = .000). The additional fiber reinforcement of the test specimen did not affect the impact strength (P = .363). Delamination negatively correlated with the impact strength of the test specimens (r = -.72, P = .000). The results of this study suggest that glass fiber reinforcement enhanced the impact strength of autopolymerizing poly(methyl methacrylate), while the use of additional fiber reinforcement made of aramid or glass fibers in the test specimens did not have an effect on the impact strength.