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Herbal Mouthrinses for Prevention of Dental Caries in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

Authors

  • Ankita Saikia Department of Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Centre for Early Childhood Caries Research (CECCRe), Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (SRIHER) (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • Abirami Sivasubramanian Department of Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Centre for Early Childhood Caries Research (CECCRe), Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (SRIHER) (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • MS Muthu Department of Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Centre for Early Childhood Caries Research (CECCRe), Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (SRIHER) (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • Akila Ganesh Department of Public Health Dentistry, Sri Ramachandra Dental College and Hospital, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • Krithika Chandrasekaran Department of Oral Medicine and Radiology, Meenakshi Academy of Higher Education and Research, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
  • Richard Kirubakaran Department of Biostatistics, Centre for Biostatistics and Evidence‑Based Medicine, Vellore, Tamil Nadu; Department of Research, Narayana Dental College and Hospital, Nellore, Andhra Pradesh, India

Keywords:

Caries prevention, Herbs, Herbal mouthrinse, Streptococcus mutans, Systematic review

Abstract

The primary aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of herbal mouthrinses (HMR) on caries prevention in children and adolescents. In addition, this systematic review assessed its effectiveness in remineralization of white spot lesions, reduction of halitosis, and improving gingival and periodontal health in orthodontic patients and patients with special healthcare needs (SHCN). A comprehensive bibliographic search was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Central, EMBASE, AMED, ProQuest, CINAHL, AYUSH, Digital Helpline for Ayurveda Research Articles (DHARA), and Clinical Trial Gov databases. A total of 3,918 titles were identified during the initial search. Of these, 32 studies were selected for quality assessment. A total of 5,038 participants from 10 countries were thus included in this review, with 22 (66.7%) studies conducted in India. All included studies were published between 2004 and 2021. Included studies investigated the effect of HMR on caries increments, which record decayed, missing, filled (DMF) [International Caries Detection and Assessment System (ICDAS)], decayed, missing, filled teeth/surfaces (DMFT/S), and incipient caries. Changes in bacterial count (Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus) and alterations in levels of Candida albicans from saliva or plaque samples were also reported. The effect of HMR on gingival and plaque indices among adolescents undergoing orthodontic treatment and children with SHCN was reported in two studies. The variance in the HMR formula across studies, short follow-up period, and limiting grade of evidence do not allow for conclusive evidence of the efficacy of HMR. This warrants high-quality randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with longer intervention periods involving children under 6 years to yield more conclusive results. How to cite this article Saikia AM, Sivasubramanian A, MS M, et al. Herbal Mouthrinses for Prevention of Dental Caries in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2024;17(S-1):S100–S111. Keywords: Caries prevention, Herbs, Herbal mouthrinse, Streptococcus mutans, Systematic review

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