The Topic is Hot:   GARGLING

Dental institutes are leading the charge in trials on gargles and mouthwashes and related actions as preventative measures against Sars CoV -2.    While antibacterial and antiviral preparations have long been a requirement in dental practice, dentists have also considered the possible effects of oral hygiene on the whole body. 

Recent studies: 

“Research has shown that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is most active in the throat during the early days of infection. Further backing this theory, a new study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases has also revealed that high viral loads can be detected in the oral cavity and throat of some COVID-19 patients.  Gargling with commercially available mouthwashes can help reduce this viral load and possibly the risk of coronavirus transmission, the study authors said.”

“Research has demonstrated that poor oral hygiene is an important factor that could influence occurrence of respiratory infection. This is especially relevant at this time of the Covid-19 pandemic. The public needs to appreciate the benefit of good oral hygiene (tooth brushing, inter-dental cleaning and mouthwash).”

“Covid-19 spreads via saliva and this is the basis of the need for social distancing. Toothpastes and mouthwashes contain substances, similar to those in hand sanitizers, that have antiviral actions and these could also impact the ability of the Covid-19 to spread which is obviously an additional benefit of a good oral hygiene regimen.

Michael Lewis from Cardiff is a professor of oral medicine and says spending two minutes twice a day on cleaning your teeth “has never been so important.”

“The oral cavity, an essential part of the upper aerodigestive tract, is believed to play an important role in the pathogenicity and transmission of SARS-CoV-2. The identification of targeted antiviral mouth rinses to reduce salivary viral load would contribute to reducing the COVID-19 pandemic. While awaiting the results of significant clinical studies, which to date do not exist, the commercial availability of mouth rinses leads us to search among them for reagents that would have specific antiviral properties with respect to SARS-CoV-2.”  

“Beyond COVID-19, it would also be an entry point with the medical and health care community to continue to emphasize the importance of the oral sphere in the transmission of viruses and in the fight to reduce the transmission of infectious diseases. History reinforces that outbreaks such as H1N1, SARS, and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) are not isolated, once-in-a-lifetime events. Rather, we need to prepare for rapidly emerging epidemics of respiratory viral origin and need a new generation of products, technologies, and techniques that are able to respond in an agile and multidisciplinary manner.”