A short-term study of the effects of ozone irrigation in an orthodontic population with fixed appliances

The aim of the present study was to compare the clinical efficacy of chlorhexidine and ozonised water in the oral hygiene maintenance of orthodontic patients.

Study design: This is a prospective clinical study. Thirty patients with orthodontic brackets were selected at the Versilia General Hospital (Lido di Camaiore, Italy). Patients were randomly allocated to one of two groups: standard oral hygiene session followed by prescription of either chlorhexidine mouth-rinse or ozonated water. At each moment of the follow-up, the following parameters were recorded: pocket probing depth (PPD), full-mouth plaque index (FMPI), and full mouth bleeding score (FMBS).

Sample size was computed according to previously published data. Significance level was set at 0.05 for all analyses, and non-parametric Wilcoxon signed rank test was used for comparisons.

At baseline, mean PPD was 1.89 ± 0.13 mm for the control group and 1.95 ± 0.10 mm for the test group. Mean FMPI was 63.9 ± 16.5% and 68.7 ± 10.33% respectively. Mean FMBS was 31.5 ± 15.6% and 32.8 ± 8.85 respectively. One month after treatment (T2), both groups showed a significant improvement of FMPI and FMBS. Mean FMPI was 42.8 ± 14.3% and 24.3 ± 6.41% respectively. Mean FMBS was 19.5 ±12.6% and 4.70 ± 3.56% respectively. The test group treated with ozone exhibited a greater improvement of FMPI and FMBS.

Ozone yielded better outcomes than chlorhexidine in the management of gingivitis in orthodontic patients. Ozone should be further investigated in longitudinal studies with larger samples.