Pre- Post- Sealant Quantification for Scardovia Wiggsiae and Streptococcus Mutans

Objectives: Acid-producing bacterial species play critical roles in oral health and biofilm formation. Scardovia wiggsiae is a gram-positive bacteria found in oral cavities and is prevalent in early childhood caries as well as Streptococcus mutans, a facultative anaerobic bacteria. Our objective was to identify population fluctuations of these bacteria pre- and post- sealant placement procedure on pediatric patients.

Methods: A saliva repository was established from pediatric patients of age 7-15 years. Paired saliva samples, one collected pre- and the other collected post- sealant (approximately 30 days), were obtained from patients. One mL of saliva from each sample was purified for total DNA then analyzed by quantitative PCR. The average DNA quantity and purity was obtained and both S. wiggsiae and S. mutans were screened from each of the pre- and post- sealant DNA samples.

Results: Samples were collected from n=26 patients. The average amount of detectable S. wiggsiae in saliva decreased post-sealant placement: Pre-sealant = 11.68 ng/uL, and post-sealant = 11.14 ng/uL. Contrarily, the amount of S. mutans increased post-sealant placement: Pre-sealant = 14.54 ng/uL, and post-sealant = 15.67 ng/uL. Chi square = 3.8500, d.f. =1, p=0.0498.
Conclusions: The sealing of dental grooves on select teeth may disrupt colonization of the oral environment by some Gram positives. Further research with a larger patient sample base will be required to confirm the effect of sealants on S. wiggsiae, S. mutans, and other oral microflora.