title: Effect of repeated treatment with sustained-release chlorhexidine mouth guards on salivary levels of mutans streptococci.
abstract: The effect of multiple treatments with chlorhexidine mouth guards on salivary levels of mutans streptococci (MS) was studied. Eleven subjects with salivary MS > or = 10(5) CFU/ml were randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. Complete-arch mouth guards were coated internally with one of two ethylcellulose varnishes, one containing 30% dry w/w chlorhexidine and one containing no chlorhexidine. Subjects wore the mouth guards up to four times, each time for 7 consecutive nights while sleeping, with at least a 1-week break between treatment weeks. Subjects in the control group subsequently crossed over and also wore the chlorhexidine-containing mouth guards. Each of the week-long mouth guard sessions resulted in a reduction in mean salivary MS levels as follows (log10 CFU/ml): for the experimental group, -1.0, -0.9, -1.0 and -1.2, and for the crossover group, -1.7, -0.6, -0.5 and -0.6. Salivary MS levels were (mean +/- SD) 6.4 +/- 0.5 at baseline and 3.8 +/- 0.5 after the last mouth guard session for the experimental group and 6.0 +/- 0.5 and 4.3 +/- 0.7, respectively, for the crossover group. For the control group, there was no significant change in MS levels.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, School of Dentistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA.
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Hildebrandt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000891:Anti-Infective Agents, Local / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002710:Chlorhexidine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000494:pharmacology; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009064:Mouth Protectors; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012463:Saliva / Q000382:microbiology*; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013295:Streptococcus mutans / Q000187:drug effects*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013649:Taste
chemical_list: D000891:Anti-Infective Agents, Local; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D002710:Chlorhexidine