RINSING WITH DELMOPINOL 0.2-PERCENT AND CHLORHEXIDINE 0.2-PERCENT - SHORT-TERM EFFECT ON SALIVARY MICROBIOLOGY, PLAQUE, AND GINGIVITIS

THE AIM OF THIS SHORT-TERM STUDY was to compare the effect of delmopinol HCl 0.2% and chlorhexidine digluconate 0.2% rinses on the development of dental plaque, the healing of experimental gingivitis, and the salivary microbiology. As part of a larger study protocol, 45 healthy males enrolled in an oral hygiene program to upgrade their oral health. For this portion of the study, participants had their teeth professionally cleaned on day 0. The participants then abstained from standard mechanical oral hygiene procedures, but applied a placebo solution twice daily for 2 weeks. At the end of this period the subjects received a second professional cleaning and were then assigned to 2 treatment groups: Group 1 rinsed with 10 ml of delmopinol HCl 0.2% and Group 2 rinsed with 10 ml of chlorhexidine digluconate 0.2% for 1 minute twice daily for the next 2 weeks and continued to refrain from mechanical oral hygiene procedures. At the end of the placebo and active treatment periods 1) saliva samples were taken and cultivated on a series of media; 2) the degree of gingivitis was assessed with gingival crevicular fluid (GCF) and gingivitis index (GI); and 3) the plaque index was assessed and the stainable buccal plaque extension was analyzed planimetrically. No changes in the salivary microbiological counts were detected for the subjects rinsing with delmopinol. Subjects rinsing with chlorhexidine showed significant reductions of anaerobes, aerobes, and S. mutans in saliva. The amounts of GCF and GI were reduced largely to the same extent in both treatment groups. Mean plaque extension was reduced by 52% after delmopinol and 88% after chlorhexidine rinsing. The results show that rinsing with delmopinol for a period of 14 days 1) does not give rise to detectable changes in the cultivable salivary microflora; 2) reduces plaque regrowth less effectively than chlorhexidine; and 3) promotes the healing of an experimentally induced gingivitis largely to the same extent as chlorhexidine.