Longitudinal study on the effect of oral hygiene measures on the salivary count of microbial species with cariogenic potential.

The effect of oral hygiene education measures and professional tooth cleaning on the salivary levels of microbial species with high cariogenic potential (i.e. , and ) was evaluated at different time points. At time 0, high salivary carriage rates were recorded in the study group (n=30). Fifty percent of the subjects harbored all three species in their saliva, 27% harbored 2 species, and 23% only one species. At 3 months after oral hygiene measures, a statistically significant reduction was observed in salivary count of and The percentage of subjects harboring all three species was also highly reduced, along with an overall improvement of clinical and risk factors parameters. At 8 months after oral hygiene measures, and load was still statistically lower than that recorded at time 0, although an increment in bacterial load and a partial worsening of clinical and risk factors parameters were observed. count in saliva inversely correlated with salivary pH, while it positively correlated with salivary levels. The results obtained suggest that strengthening of the motivation and administration of oral hygiene instructions and professional tooth cleaning every 6-8 months, might be necessary to control salivary levels of cariogenic species.