The short-term treatment effects on the microbiota at the dorsum of the tongue in intra-oral halitosis patients-a randomized clinical trial.

Summary of "The short-term treatment effects on the microbiota at the dorsum of the tongue in intra-oral halitosis patients-a randomized clinical trial."

OBJECTIVES:
This study aims to assess the effects of rinsing with zinc- and chlorhexidine-containing mouth rinse with or without adjunct tongue scraping on volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) in breath air, and the microbiota at the dorsum of the tongue. MATERIAL AND
METHODS:
A randomized single-masked controlled clinical trial with a cross-over study design over 14 days including 21 subjects was performed. Bacterial samples from the dorsum of the tongue were assayed by checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization.
RESULTS:
No halitosis (identified by VSC assessments) at day 14 was identified in 12/21 subjects with active rinse alone, in 10/21with adjunct use of tongue scraper, in 1/21 for negative control rinse alone, and in 3/21 in the control and tongue scraping sequence. At day 14, significantly lower counts were identified only in the active rinse sequence (p < 0.001) for 15/78 species including, Fusobacterium sp., Porphyromonas gingivalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Tannerella forsythia. A decrease in bacteria from baseline to day 14 was found in successfully treated subjects for 9/74 species including: P. gingivalis, Prevotella melaninogenica, S. aureus, and Treponema denticola. Baseline VSC scores were correlated with several bacterial species. The use of a tongue scraper combined with active rinse did not change the levels of VSC compared to rinsing alone.
CONCLUSIONS:
VSC scores were not associated with bacterial counts in samples taken from the dorsum of the tongue. The active rinse alone containing zinc and chlorhexidine had effects on intra-oral halitosis and reduced bacterial counts of species associated with malodor. Tongue scraping provided no beneficial effects on the microbiota studied. CLINICAL
RELEVANCE:
Periodontally healthy subjects with intra-oral halitosis benefit from daily rinsing with zinc- and chlorhexidine-containing mouth rinse.

Affiliation

Department of Oral Health Science, Section for Health and Society, Kristianstad University, Kristianstad, Sweden.

Journal Details

This article was published in the following journal.

Name: Clinical oral investigations
ISSN: 1436-3771
Pages:

Links

• PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22573244
• DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00784-012-0728-y