Dr. Gunjan Dhir and the Science of a Healthier Denture

• Dr. Gunjan Dhir is a prosthodontist and co-founder of Altius Dental, the group behind Fiesta Dental in Hondo, Texas.
• In her 2007 study, as lead author, Dr. Gunjan Dhir tested whether a yeast resisting denture material kept its everyday physical properties.
• In the 2008 study, as co-author, she helped confirm the material stayed strong, crack resistant, and able to hold its teeth.
• Together, the two studies explored whether denture materials could be modified to discourage Candida while maintaining important physical and mechanical properties.
• Fiesta Dental is a 4.7 star dental office in Hondo, Texas, led by Dr. Dheeraj Kumar Koli, DDS.

Who Is Dr. Gunjan Dhir?

Dr. Gunjan Dhir is a prosthodontist and the co-founder and Chief Dental Officer of Altius Dental, the group Fiesta Dental in Hondo belongs to. Prosthodontics is the dental specialty built around replacing and restoring teeth, which places dentures at the center of her training. She earned her dental degree in 2002 and completed her prosthodontics specialist training in 2005. Dr. Gunjan Dhir is also a co-founder of Smile Savers Dental Solutions, a program developed with Dr. Gaurav Puri to make implant and full-mouth restorative care more accessible to rural and underserved communities in Texas.

Beyond the clinic, Dr. Gunjan Dhir is a published dental researcher who studied the denture as a material, not only the visible teeth, publishing peer reviewed work on how to make that material healthier for the people who wear it. You can read her full profile on the Altius Dental leadership page.

Why the Denture Itself Became the Target

A denture attracts yeast because its surface gives the yeast an easy place to settle. Most dentures are shaped from an acrylic called PMMA, which is comfortable and natural looking, but a common yeast named Candida albicans takes hold on it readily. That yeast drives denture stomatitis, the reddened and often painless patch that appears under a denture.

The research explored whether adding a phosphate-containing component could change the denture surface in a way that may discourage Candida adhesion while preserving the physical properties needed for a denture. That single idea runs through both of Dr. Gunjan Dhir’s studies.

Due for a denture check in Hondo? Book online or call (830) 581-2621. Fiesta Dental welcomes new patients of all ages.

The Research: Two Studies With One Goal

Dr. Gunjan Dhir did not settle the yeast problem in a single paper. She worked through it across two connected studies published a year apart. In the first, the 2007 study in the Journal of Prosthodontics where she was lead author, the team checked whether a phosphate modified denture resin still behaved like a denture, measuring strength, water absorption, and color stability. Kept within a balanced amount of the charged ingredient, the material stayed inside accepted limits, while a heavier dose pushed some properties out of range.  
Read the 2007 study: Physical Properties of Denture Base Resins Potentially Resistant to Candida Adhesion — PubMed

The second, the 2008 study in the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry where she was a co-author, tested the properties that decide whether a denture survives daily life:

• Impact strength, meaning surviving a drop onto a hard floor
• Fracture toughness, meaning resisting cracks that spread over months
• The bond that keeps the false teeth locked to the base
• Surface wettability, the change linked to discouraging yeast

Read the 2008 study: Effect of Phosphate Group Addition on the Properties of Denture Base Resins — PubMed
The results tied the story together. Adding the yeast resisting phosphate did not meaningfully lower impact strength or fracture toughness, every version cleared the international standard for holding the teeth in place, and the surface grew more water friendly. Two papers, one conclusion: a denture can be aimed at yeast without trading away the strength, durability, or bonding a denture depends on.

How a Lab Actually Tests a Denture Material

A denture material is not judged by opinion. It is put through standardized bench tests, each mimicking a real hazard. Impact strength is measured by striking a small bar and recording the energy it absorbs before breaking, which stands in for a denture dropped in the sink. Fracture toughness gauges how easily a tiny existing flaw grows into a full crack under stress. Bond strength is tested by pulling a denture tooth from its base until it releases, then comparing the force against an international benchmark. Water absorption is weighed before and after soaking, because a resin that drinks water can swell, and color stability is read by an instrument so that a vague sense of looking right becomes a measured number.

Dr. Gunjan Dhir’s research was also careful to name its own limits. This is early, laboratory stage evidence. Before a material like this belongs in anyone’s mouth, it needs larger biocompatibility and clinical testing to confirm how it behaves inside a living mouth over years. That restraint is a strength, not a weakness, and it reflects the same careful standard behind denture care at Fiesta Dental.

Denture Care at Fiesta Dental in Hondo

Everyday denture care in Hondo is provided by Dr. Dheeraj Kumar Koli, DDS, a general dentist with more than 16 years of experience in preventive, restorative, and cosmetic dentistry. Patients describe him as gentle and easy to talk to, the kind of dentist who explains your options simply and never pressures you, and that same evidence minded approach reflected in Dr. Gunjan Dhir’s research guides the denture care offered here.

The habits that keep yeast in check are refreshingly ordinary: a denture that actually fits, a real cleaning of the fitting surface every day, a rest for the tissue overnight when your dentist agrees, and a denture reline before a loose denture starts to rub. Fiesta Dental serves patients across Hondo and the surrounding Medina County area, and its care shows in a 4.7 star rating across 402 Google reviews.

“Quick, efficient, friendly. No upselling. Wonderful experience.” Richard M., Google review

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