An alternative impression technique for

complete dentures
Burak Yilmaz, DDS, PhDa and Tuncer Burak Özçelik, DDS, PhDb
College of Dentistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio;
Faculty of Dentistry, Başkent University, Ankara, Turkey
This article describes a technique for creating adequate space for an even thickness of polyvinyl siloxane (PVS) impression
material at the periphery during complete denture impression making. A PVS border molding material is injected around the
borders of a custom tray, a 17-mm-thick stretch wrap film is folded into 4 layers, and a tray-shaped piece slightly larger than
the size of the custom tray is placed on the tray covering the borders. After the border molding procedure is completed, the
film is removed and the definitive impression completed with a medium-viscosity PVS impression material. (J Prosthet Dent
2014;111:166-168)

Impression accuracy affects the
success of complete dentures. A wide
range of materials and techniques
are available for the impression of
edentulous arches. Clinicians need to
select appropriate materials and tech-
niques for successful complete denture
therapy.1,2
Three basic techniques for impression
making have been described as they relate
to the pressures selectively applied to
particular anatomic areas: mucostatic
impression technique (minimal pressure
technique),3 functional impression
technique (pressure technique),4 and
semifunctional impression technique
(selective pressure technique).5
The selective pressure impression
technique has been widely used for the
definitive impressions of edentulous
arches.6 One of the common tech-
niques used is the Boucher technique,6
where a 1-mm thickness of wax is
used on the entire basal area in the
custom tray and the tray is trimmed so
that the flanges of the tray are 2 mm
short of the depth of the vestibule.
Once the border molding is performed,
the periphery of the border molding
material is trimmed by 0.5 mm and the
wax is removed to provide adequate
space for light-body impression mate-
rial. In this technique, the border
molding material should be easily
trimmed and shaped for the excess
material to be removed and the borders
should be shaped before the definitive
impression is made. Adequate space
should be created for the definitive
impression material. Otherwise, the
vestibular tissues will be displaced and
the denture flanges will be over-
extended, thereby dislodging the den-
ture. Removing 0.5 mm of material
from the inner, outer, and top surface
of the border is advised.6
Although border molding is of the
utmost importance for complete den-
ture impressions, a significant number of
dentists have reported that they aban-
doned the procedures that they were
taught in the complete denture curricu-
lum and made definitive denture im-
pressions in their private practices with
techniques they considered simpler.7
Although elastomeric impression
material allows finishing the border
molding of all flanges at once, is easy
to manipulate, saves time, and can
be used with automatic mixing sys-
tems,8-11 its heavy consistency presents
some disadvantages when it is used
for border molding. According to Tan
et al,10 because of its heavy consistency,
the borders of vestibular impressions
recorded with polyether impression
material were longer than those recor-
ded with modeling compound.11
A scalpel or a bur is usually recom-
mended for trimming excess material if
the border molding is made with an
impression compound, whereas with
elastomeric impression materials, only
a scalpel is recommended.6,8 In the
authors’ opinion, especially when elas-
tomeric materials are used, these tech-
niques are operator sensitive, and the
clinician may have difficulty controlling
the amount of material removed.
Moreover, using a scalpel to remove
material often roughens the border
molding material. The controlled
removal of material is important in
achieving an even thickness of definitive
impression material at the peripheral
areas. This is particularly important if
the border molding material has a
different structure and consistency from
the definitive impression material, for
example, when impression compound
is used for border molding and zinc
oxide eugenol is used as the definitive
impression material.
This report describes a technique for
creating adequate space for an even
thickness of definitive impression ma-
terial at the borders during complete
denture impressions with polyvinyl
siloxane (PVS) border molding and

a
Assistant Professor, Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry, College of Dentistry, The Ohio State University.
b
Assistant Professor, Department of Prosthodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, Başkent University.

The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry Yilmaz and Özçelik

February 2014
1 Four layers of stretch wrap film around borders of
custom tray.
2 Border molding material and stretch wrap film on borders
of tray after PVS border molding material polymerizes.
3 Stretch wrap film removed from tray and border
molding with PVS completed.
impression materials. This technique
allows clinicians to control the thick-
ness of the definitive impression mate-
rial at the borders of the custom tray.
Yilmaz and Özçelik
However, clinicians should be careful
not to fold the stretch wrap film while
placing the tray in the mouth for border
molding. This technique requires some
167
experience but is recommended when
elastomeric impression materials are
used.
TECHNIQUE
1. Make the impression of the
edentulous arch (maxillary in this
example) with a stock tray and irre-
versible hydrocolloid material (Cavex
outline; Cavex Holland BV) and pour
the cast in Type III stone (Alston; Ata
Yapı Ürünleri San ve Tic Ltd Şti).
2. Adapt a 1-mm thickness (1 layer)
of base-plate wax to the cast to provide
space in the tray for the definitive
impression material.
3. Fabricate a custom tray (Mega-
tray; Megadenta GmbH). Place 4 soft
tissue stops at the canine and first molar
sites bilaterally (Flexitime impression
material, Heraeus Kulzer GmbH & Co
KG) and shorten the peripheral borders
of the tray to 2 mm from the depth of the
vestibule to create space for the border
molding material. Place the tray in the
patient’s mouth and check that the
borders are adequately shortened.
4. Apply an adhesive (Trayloc A;
Detax GmbH & Co KG, Ettlingen) on
the inside and outside of the peripheral
borders of the custom tray.
5. Select a 17-mm-thick stretch wrap
film (Sera stretch film; Rotopas Ambalaj
Sanayi ve Tic AŞ) and fold it into 4 layers.
Cut a tray-shaped piece slightly larger
than the size of the custom tray (Fig. 1).
6. Inject PVS border molding mate-
rial (Detaseal Function; Detax GmbH &
Co KG) around the border and place
the 4-layer stretch wrap film on the tray,
covering the borders of the tray.
7. Place the custom tray in the
mouth carefully so as not to fold the
stretch wrap film. Make the necessary
movements of the lip and cheeks to
simulate the movements of the frena
and peripheral tissues, and let the
border molding material set.
8. Once the material sets, remove
the tray from the mouth and then the
stretch wrap film from the borders of
the tray (Figs. 2, 3).
9. Inspect the borders of the tray to
see if the molding is adequate and correct
168
4 Definitive impression made with medium-bodied PVS
impression material.
any deficiencies by adding small amounts
of border molding material and repeating
the steps as needed (Fig. 3).
10. After achieving adequate space
for the impression material, make the
definitive impression of the edentulous
arch with a medium-consistency PVS
impression material (Variotime mono-
phase; Heraeus Kulzer) (Fig. 4).
SUMMARY
The accuracy of border molding
and the definitive impression are of
the utmost importance for the success
of complete dentures. During border
molding procedures, adequate space
The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry
should be created for the definitive
impression material. A technique where
a stretch wrap film was used to create
a uniform space for the definitive
impression material is described.
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Corresponding author:
Dr Burak Yilmaz
Division of Restorative and Prosthetic Dentistry
College of Dentistry
The Ohio State University
Columbus, OH 43210
E-mail: yilmaz.16@osu.edu
Copyright ª 2014 by the Editorial Council for
The Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry.
Yilmaz and Özçelik