Effetto di un collutorio agli oli essenziali nella riduzione di placca e infiammazione interprossimali rispetto a una soluzione a base di etanolo

Objectives

To assess whether the well-documented action of a mouthrinse is due either to its content in essential oils as active ingredients or to its high concentration of ethanol as a solvent.

Materials and methods

This randomized, controlled, parallel clinical trial lasted four weeks. Twenty-eight subjects were enrolled and equally divided into two groups of 14 subjects each. The first group was given a mouthrinse (Listerine), whereas the second group was given a hydroalcoholic solution containing 21.3% ethanol. All patients were instructed to rinse their mouth twice a day for four weeks. The approximal plaque index (API) and the papillary bleeding index (PBI) were used to assess hygiene and interproximal inflammation levels, which were measured at t₀, t₁₄ e t₂₈.

Results

API and PBI indexes showed a statistically significant decrease in the first group; on the contrary, there were negligible variations in the control group.

Conclusions

The results of this clinical trial suggest that the action of the examined mouthrinse is not due to its high concentration of ethanol, but to its contents in essential oils.