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Efficacy of Miswak toothpaste and mouthwash on cariogenic bacteria
Samim A Al-Dabbagh1, Huda J Qasim, Nadia A Al-Derzi
1Department of Family and Community Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Duhok, Kurdistan region, Iraq. E-mail. samimaldabbagh@yahoo.com.
Objectives:
To evaluate the efficacy of Salvadora persica (Miswak) products on cariogenic bacteria in comparison with ordinary toothpaste.
Methods:
The study was conducted in Zakho city, Kurdistan region, Iraq during the period from October 2013 to January 2014. A randomized controlled clinical trial of 40 students randomly allocated into 4 groups. They were instructed to use Mismark toothpaste, Miswak mouthwash, and ordinary toothpaste with water or with normal saline. Salivary samples were collected at 3-time intervals: before, immediately after use, and after 2 weeks of use. The effect of each method on Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli was evaluated by using caries risk test.
Results:
One-way repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA), one-way ANOVA, and least significant difference tests were used. Miswak wash has a significant reduction effect on both bacteria immediately and after 2 weeks of use. Miswak paste has a similar effect on Lactobacilli, while Streptococcus mutans showed a significant decrease only after 2 weeks of use. Ordinary paste showed a non significant effect on both bacteria at both time intervals; while the addition of normal saline showed a significant effect on both bacteria only after 2 weeks of use.
Conclusion:
Miswak products, especially mouth wash, were more effective in reducing the growth of cariogenic bacteria than ordinary toothpaste.
