Abstract
This study was carried out to evaluate the action of 0.2% sodium fluoride (900 ppmF), and 0.2% chlorhexidinegluconatemouthrinses besides tooth brushing on plaque and gingival indices. To achieve this aim 45 patients undergoing fixed orthodontic therapy were divided into 3 equal groups randomly which were on tooth brushing only, tooth brushing with 0.2% sodium fluoride and tooth brushing with 0.2% chlorhexidinemouthrinses. The second group rinse with 10 ml of sodium fluoride once weekly for 8 weeks, while the third group rinse with 10 mi of chlorhexidine twice daily for the same period, the plaque and gingival indices were scored at base-line and then evaluated after 4 and 8 weeks. The present study revealed that the mean plaque index was significantly reduce (p<0.05) for the chlorhexidine and sodium fluoride patients in comparison with the first group throughout period of study. A similar trend was noted with gingival index as the lower values were recorded to the chlorhexidine groups, moreover, analysis of variance showed significant differences among groups and the chlorhexidine means were the mostly affected one. These results indicate that sodium fluoride could be use also for plaque and gingivitis control in addition to its anticariogenic action for patient undergoing orthodontic treatment.
