The antifungal effect of zirconium dioxide nanoparticles (ZrO₂NPs) incorporated into denture base material has been inadequately investigated; additionally, to the authors’ knowledge, no studies have assessed the influence of artificial aging on the antifungal activity of these particles. Methodology. Heat-polymerized acrylic resin disks were fabricated and divided into four groups (0%, 1%, 2.5%, and 5% ZrO₂NPs by weight). Antifungal activity was assessed using the direct culture and disk diffusion methods. Surface roughness and contact angles were measured using a profilometer and a goniometer, respectively. The artificial aging procedure was performed by repeating all tests at 7, 14, and 30 days following 2 rounds of thermocycling. Data were analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey’s post-hoc test ( ). Results. The addition of ZrO₂NPs significantly decreased the adhesion of Candida albicans with and without artificial aging procedures ( ), while the disk diffusion methods did not reveal inhibition zones. ZrO₂NP-modified specimens displayed significantly higher surface roughness compared to specimens in the control group ( ) and showed the same behaviors with artificial aging procedures. The contact angle was significantly decreased in all modified groups in comparison to the control group ( ). Conclusion. The addition of ZrO₂NPs to polymethylmethacrylate denture base material reduced the adhesion of Candida albicans with a long-term antifungal effect. With the addition of ZrO₂NPs, contact angles were decreased and surface roughness was increased; 1% was the most appropriate concentration. Clinical significance. The addition of ZrO₂NPs to denture base material confers a long-term antifungal effect and could be used as a possible method for preventing and treating denture stomatitis.

ZrO₂ nanoparticles (ZNPs) have excellent physical properties. This study investigated the fracture load of implant-supported, fixed cantilevered prosthesis materials, reinforced with ZNPs and various polymerization techniques, compared with conventional and CAD/CAM materials. Sixty specimens were made from two CAD/CAM; milled (MIL) (Ceramill TEMP); and 3D-printed (NextDent Denture 3D+). Conventional heat-polymerized acrylic resin was used to fabricate the other specimens, which were grouped according to their polymerization technique: conventionally (HP) and autoclave-polymerized (AP); conventionally cured and reinforced with 5 wt% ZNPs (HPZNP); and autoclave reinforced with 5 wt% ZNPs (APZNP). The specimens were thermocycled (5000 cycles/30 s dwell time). Each specimen was subjected to static vertical loading (1 mm/min) using a universal Instron testing machine until fracture. Scanning electron microscopy was used for fracture surface analyses. The ANOVA showed significant fracture load differences between all the tested groups (p = 0.001). The Tukey post hoc tests indicated a significant difference in fracture load between all tested groups (p ˂ 0.001) except HP vs. HPZNP and AP vs. MIL. APZNP had the lowest mean fracture load value (380.7 ± 52.8 N), while MIL had the highest (926.6 ± 82.8 N). The CAD/CAM materials exhibited the highest fracture load values, indicating that they could be used in long-term interim prostheses. Autoclave polymerization improved fracture load performance, whereas ZrO₂ nanoparticles decreased the fracture load performance of cantilevered prostheses.