THE JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY BOLOURI AND MCCARTHY

604 VOLUME 79 NUMBER 5THE JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY

A complete denture or a removable partial den-ture that receives its support from the underlying softtissue must be relined periodically to maintain close ad-aptation to the soft tissue and to maintain optimal func-tion without causing excessive trauma to the oral cavity.When doing a conventional relining procedure, an im-pression is obtained inside the prosthesis and the result-ant cast is securely mounted in the articulator or relinejig. The tissue surface of the prosthesis is cleaned ofimpression material and the prosthesis is waxed to thecast and invested in the flask.1 The wax is softened bysubmerging the flask in warm water, then eliminated byflushing the opened flask with hot water. This extendedexposure to high heat has been shown to release strainsin the processed denture base that causes subsequentwarpage.2 It can also cause separation of porcelain den-ture teeth from the acrylic resin. The water used to flushout the wax is recycled water and may also leave a thinfilm of wax on the denture surface, which can preventadequate chemical bonding between the denture baseand the new acrylic resin. After flushing, the flask mustbe allowed to return to room temperature, which in-volves considerable time.

In this procedure, the use of wax is eliminated. Thus,the procedure saves time, eliminates the need for sub-mitting the denture to excessive heat and the risk of dis-tortion, and allows for a cleaner more thorough bondof the acrylic resin.

PROCEDURE

An articulator or reline jig may be used for this proce-dure. The reline jig was chosen to illustrate the proce-dure and occasionally an articulator is referred to as analternate procedure.

1. Prepare the surface of the prosthesis for the reline.Use the impression material that is most appropriate for

aProfessor, Department of Restorative Sciences.bAssistant Professor, Department of Restorative Sciences.

A procedure for relining a complete or removable partial denture without theuse of wax

Ali Bolouri, DMD, DDS,a and Sandra L. McCarthy, DDSb

The Texas A & M University System, Baylor College of Dentistry, Dallas,Texas

Various procedures are used to reline removable dentures. Some of these involve the use of wax toseal the denture to the cast for flasking and processing. This necessitates the use of high tempera-tures for an extended period and involves the risk of warpage of the denture. It is also relativelytime-consuming. This article describes a procedure that uses polyvinyl siloxane instead of wax. Theprocedure is more time efficient and decreases the risk of warpage of the denture. (J Prosthet Dent1998;79:604-6.)

the conditions to adapt the internal surface of the den-ture to the denture-supporting tissues and reorient theocclusal surfaces to the opposing teeth.

Fig. 1. Denture with reline impression on cast mounted inreline jig before removing complete denture from cast andocclusal index.

Fig. 2. Denture removed from cast. Impression has been re-moved from denture and acrylic resin freshened with bur.

DENTAL TECHNOLOGY Kenneth D. Rudd

BOLOURI AND MCCARTHY THE JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY

MAY 1998 605

2. Box the impression with irreversible hydrocolloid3

so that the polished surface of the denture is not abradedor damaged and pour artificial stone to form a cast.

3. Remove the boxing material. Trim the cast withthe denture still leaving a 2.0 to 3.0 mm land area aroundthe denture. Index the base of the cast so that it may bereoriented to the articulator or reline jig before separa-tion from the cast.

4. Use a reline jig or articulator to maintain the rela-tionship of the denture to the cast. Place a sufficientamount of a mix of gypsum on the lower member of thejig and index the occlusal surfaces of the teeth into it.After the gypsum has set, mount the cast to the uppermember of the reline jig making sure that the locknutsare fully screwed onto the posts before the gypsum hasset (Fig. 1). An alternative procedure is to mount theprosthesis in an articulator against either the opposingdenture or a cast of the opposing denture using the ap-propriate maxillomandibular records. (This procedureis preferred because it allows a selective grind-in proce-dure to be performed after processing.)

5. When the gypsum is set, open the reline jig andremove the denture from the cast. Clean the impressionmaterial from inside the denture and freshen the inter-nal surface of acrylic resin with a bur made for grindingacrylic resin (Fig. 2). When a maxillary complete den-ture is being relined, inscribe a new posterior palatalseal into the cast (Fig. 3).

6. Position the prosthesis into the occlusal index onthe lower member of the reline jig. Use a syringe toinject a mix or heavy bodied polyvinyl siloxane materialinto the sulcus of the cast that represents the peripheralborder of the denture (Fig. 4). When a mandibular pros-thesis is being relined, also inject the lingual border sul-cus on the cast. Orient the cast into the prosthesis byclosing the reline jig and screwing the locknuts onto theposts before the final set of the impression material.

7. Use a cotton-tipped applicator wetted with waterto remove gross excesses and shape the polyvinyl silox-ane impression material at the denture border (Fig. 5).(The acrylic resin border of the denture should be em-bedded into the impression material 1.0 to 1.5 mm.)

Fig. 3. Posterior palatal seal carved into cast of maxillary com-plete denture.

Fig. 4. Heavy bodied polyvinyl siloxane impression materialinjected into vestibular sulcus of cast.

Fig. 5. Reline jig is assembled. Wet cotton-tipped applicator isused to smooth and shape polyvinyl siloxane material at den-ture border.

Fig. 6. Cast removed from reline jig and borders evaluated.

THE JOURNAL OF PROSTHETIC DENTISTRY BOLOURI AND MCCARTHY

606 VOLUME 79 NUMBER 5

Fig. 7. Complete denture flasked in conventional manner. Fig. 8. Complete relined denture. Acrylic resin bonded with-out visible indication of interface between old and new.

8. After the material has set, remove the cast with theattached denture from the reline jig (Fig. 6). (Excessimpression material may be trimmed off with a labora-tory knife or other sharp instrument.)

9. Flask the prosthesis in a conventional manner4 (Fig.7). (Covering the denture border with impression ma-terial helps to protect the acrylic resin from contamina-tion with tinfoil substitute and gypsum by keeping thesematerials out of contact with the denture border resin.)

10. Pry the flask open immediately after the completeset of the gypsum that was used in the flasking process.Remove and discard the polyvinyl siloxane impressionmaterial.

11. Coat the cast with a separating medium, wet theborder and the inside of the prosthesis with acrylic resinmonomer, and pack the denture with a mix of acrylicresin. Process the flask assembly at temperatures recom-mended by manufacturer. Deflask, trim, and polish theprosthesis in the usual manner4 (Fig. 8). (Even thoughthe properties of autopolymerizing acrylic resin havebeen improved to withstand the requirements for use asa reline material, the heat-curing acrylic resins still pro-duce superior results, particularly if a method is usedthat does not expose the denture to high temperaturesfor long periods.)

DISCUSSION

The use of wax to provide the missing contours of thedenture border and to seal the prosthesis to the cast ne-

cessitates the immersion of the flask in warm water tosoften the wax and repeated washing of the flask andprosthesis with hot recycled water may leave a thin filmof wax. It is also a time-consuming process, which addi-tionally requires a cooling down period before packingthe acrylic resin.

The use of polyvinyl siloxane impression material inlieu of wax saves time and decreases the chance ofwarpage of the prosthesis.

REFERENCES1. Sharry JJ. Complete denture prosthodontics. 1st ed. New York: Blakiston

Division, McGraw-Hill; 1962. p. 293.2. Phillips RW. Skinner’s science of dental materials. 9th ed. Philadelphia: WB

Saunders; 1991. p. 204.3. Bolouri A, McKinney TW. Boxing impressions for complete denture relines.

Compend Cont Dent Ed 1984;5:123-6.4. Morrow RM, Rudd KD, Rhoads JE. Dental laboratory procedures, complete

dentures. 2nd ed. St Louis: CV Mosby; 1986. p. 312-38.

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DEPARTMENT OF RESTORATIVE SCIENCES

BAYLOR COLLEGE OF DENTISTRY

TEXAS A & M UNIVERSITY SYSTEM

PO BOX 660677DALLAS, TX 75266-0677

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