The potential effect of ethyl alcohol elution from liner type denture adhesives on breath alcohol concentration and determination of drunk driving

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: The application of liner type denture adhesives containing ethyl alcohol (EtOH) may result in the person being considered a drunk driver, which is a social problem. This study measured the amount of EtOH loss from the materials and its effect on breath alcohol concentration (BrAC). MATERIALS AND METHODS: The amount of EtOH loss of three liner type denture adhesives was measured using a gas chromatograph-mass spectrometer. Five specimens were measured for each material. The BrAC of ten participants who wore the palatal plate lined with the material having the highest amount of EtOH elution was also determined using an alcohol detector every 5 min for 60 min. The threshold for drunk driving was a BrAC of 0.15 mg/L or more. RESULTS: Significant differences were found in the amount of EtOH elution among the three materials. For all materials, the elution amount from the start of immersion to 30 min was significantly larger than that of the following 30 min (P < 0.05). BrAC values of the participants reached their maxima 5 min after insertion of the materials, and 80% of participants surpassed the threshold for drunk driving. However, no participants reached the threshold for drunk driving after 50 min. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that a determination of drunk drinking will not be made when 1 h or more has passed after insertion of a denture lined with a liner type denture adhesive into the mouth, though a determination of drunk driving may exist due to EtOH from the materials.