Comparison of alcoholic and non-alcoholic oral rinse during fixed appliance therapy

Gingival inflammation is often associated with the use of fixed orthodontic appliances which leads to elevated gingival inflammation level during orthodontic treatment. Aims and objectives of this study was to compare and evaluate the efficacy of two mouthwashes in reducing the bacterial activity. Non- alcoholic mouthwash (Colgate Plax Complete Care) and Alcoholic (Original Listerine) were tested in our study. Oral hygiene were evaluated using Loe and Silness gingival index, Silness and Loe plaque index and Muhlemann and Son sulcular bleeding index. Quantification of Streptococcus mutans from the saliva sample was taken from the orthodontic patients undergoing fixed orthodontic appliance. The study outcome indicated that Non-alcoholic mouthwash showed maximum efficacy in bringing about a reduction in bacterial activity.