Changes in the main dental parameters of preschoolers with caries affected by long-term probiotic intake

Relevance. For several decades, they have added bacteria called probiotics to some foods for their positive effects on human health. In dental practice, probiotics may help fight caries and inflammatory periodontal diseases. Dentists  are interested in probiotics because of the latter’s ability to adhere to and colonize various oral tissues.Purpose. To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of S. salivarius M18 probiotic in preschool children.Material and methods. The study formed 2 groups (45 children in each) of children aged 3 to 6 years with multiple dental caries who underwent dental treatment and 4-fold fluoride varnish application. The main group took 2 courses of S. salivarius M18 probiotic lozenges (the 1st course from February 16 to May 16, 2021, and the 2nd course from October 26, 2021, to January 26, 2022). The children of the comparison group did not use the probiotic. We evaluated the Hygiene Index by Fedorov-Volodkina, dmf(t) rate, ICDAS-II index, and PMA index in children of both groups at the baseline and after 3, 6 and 12 months. Additionally, both groups kept food diaries. The statistical data processing was performed variance analysis of using the Friedman test (significant differences were at p ≤ 0.05).Results. The year of observation in preschool children showed that two 3-month courses of an S. salivarius M18 probiotic intake led to a signifcant improvement in the hygiene index by 2.2 times, 2.3-fold stabilization of initial caries according to the ICDAS II index, caries decrease by 81%, gingivitis prevalence reduction (PMA index decrease by 72.9%).Conclusion. The study results confirm the effectiveness of S. salivarius M18 probiotic in preschoolers with caries as a means of dental status correction and stabilization.