Evaluating the anti-plaque capabilities of a copper-containing prophylaxis paste

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a dental prophylaxis paste containing mono-copper citrate (MCC) for short term anti-plaque capabilities. In addition to other baseline data, plaque scores were recorded on 36 paid volunteer subjects from the dental school student, staff, and faculty populations. After scaling, two quadrants of each subject's dentition were polished with the MCC containing paste and two quadrants with the placebo paste, using a diagonal split mouth double blind design. Subjects did not brush or floss for two days. Plaque scores were recorded at 24 and 48 hours, after which they resumed normal hygiene. Results showed that after 24 hours placebo areas had 92% higher plaque and after 48 hours 33% higher plaque than the active paste areas. This was statistically significant at the P less than .001 level. The diminishing effect of the copper containing prophy paste over 48 hours might indicate that the copper ion should be applied on a daily basis for best anti-plaque results.