Comparative Evaluation of Anti- Plaque Efficacy of Commercially Available Herbal and 0.2% Chlorhexidine Gluconate Mouthwash: A Randomized Clinical Trial

INTRODUCTION: Anti-microbial mouth rinses limit the accumulation of dental plaque with a primary objective of controlling the development and progression of periodontal diseases. Chlorhexidine is regarded as gold standard antiplaque agent with certain side effects. Nowadays, herbal medicines with their ‘naturally occurring’ active ingredients offer a gentle and enduring way for restoration of health by the most trustworthy and least harmful way. OBJECTIVE: To Compare the Anti-Plaque Efficacy of an Herbal Mouthwash With 0.2 % Chlorhexidine Gluconate Mouthwash and Normal Saline. METHODOLOGY: It is a Double-blinded, randomized clinical trial in which 90 students were divided into 3 groups – Group A – Chlorhexidine, Group B – Herbal, and Group C – Normal saline. Subjects with GI& PI less than 1 were included in the study. These students were refrained from their regular mechanical oral hygiene measures and were asked to swish the mouthwashes given to them for 4 days. GI& PI scores were then re-evaluated on the 5th day and the differences were compared statistically by ANOVA& Student ’t’-test. RESULTS: Least post-rinsing GI scores were observed with Herbal mouthwash whereas least PI scores with Chlorhexidine. Highest scores were observed with Normal Saline. The difference in post-rinsing PI scores between groups A& B was statistically non-significant (p value – 0.076). CONCLUSION: With in the limitations of the study, it was concluded that 0.2 % Chlorhexidine mouthwash remains the best anti-plaque agent. Herbal rinse may be considered as a good alternative.