Mechanical Brushing Effects in vitro of a Dentifrice Containing Punica granatum Linné

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate in vitro the effects of mechanical brushing with Punica granatum Linne (P. granatum L.) or pomegranate on the mass, roughness and color of artificial teeth in acrylic resin. Methods: The artificial teeth (n=30) were randomly distributed into 3 groups, according to the tested solution (n = 10 each group): Distilled Water (DW), Commercial Dentifrice (CD) and Dentifrice based on P. granatum L. (PD). All the samples were brushed for a simulated 5-year period. The effects of mechanical brushing were evaluated before brushing and after 12, 24, 36 and 60 months. Data were submitted to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and a significance level of 5% was adopted and compared by ANOVA with Bonferroni. Results: In the PD group, the mass changed was statistically significant at T4 (0.3942 ± 0.003g). The roughness was altered only in T4 in the PD group (1.059 ± 0.053), while in the CD group was altered in T1 (0.982 ± 0.026) and T2 (0.965 ± 0.02) and finally the color changes were only detected in the PD group in T4 (2,899 ± 0.992), while in the DW group (2,050 ± 0,287 *) and common dentifrice (2,710 ± 0,228*) in T3. Conclusion: The pomegranate dentifrice did not cause deleterious effects on the surface of artificial acrylic resin teeth. Key words: Dental Prosthesis, Denture Stomatitis, Natural products, Tooth brushing, Punica granatum.