Evaluation of Hand Sanitizer for On-Site Disinfection of Mouthguards

Abstract

Oral appliances become colonized by microorganisms after a certain time in the mouth [2]. Gram-positive cocci, gram-positive bacilli, gram-negative cocci, gram-negative bacilli, yeasts, and molds were isolated from 81 athletic mouthguards submitted for microbial analysis [3]. The two most frequently gram-positive cocci isolated from athletic mouthguards were Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, prominent skin pathogens that are also associated with endocarditis, pericarditis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, food intoxication, and athletic equipment contamination [4].