Effect of soft denture liner on stress distribution in supporting structures under a denture.

This study examined the effect of a soft denture liner on the distribution of stresses in the denture-supporting structures. Dentures without a linear and with three configurations of a soft liner were simulated by using a two-dimensional viscoelastic finite-element stress analysis. The stress intensity at functional force-bearing areas decreased when a soft denture liner was used. However, the stresses in the bone increased remarkably up to 3.0 seconds after loading. Because of the time-dependent effect of stresses applied to soft denture liners, denture patients who clench or brux may not benefit as greatly from soft denture liners. The study indicates that viscoelastic finite-element analysis is helpful for evaluating soft denture liners. Soft denture liners appear to be useful for improving the stress distribution in the supporting structures under dentures.