CANDIDA SPP ADHESION TO ORTHODONTIC LIGATURES

OBJECTIVE: To assess Candida spp adhesion to different types of orthodontic ligatures. MATERIALS AND METHODS:Thirty male and female patients, aged 18 to 35 years, in good periodontal health and in need of orthodontic treatment with a fixed appliance and straight arch technique were included in the study. Alastic ligatures were placed on tooth 1.4 and a metallic ligature was placed on tooth 2.4. Periodontal indices were assessed at the aforementioned teeth prior to and one month after placing the ligatures. Supragingival plaque was collected using one end of a Gracey-type curette, and a sample was collected from the bracket using the other end of the curette; the samples were placed in an Eppendorf tube containing sterile physiological solution. In addition, on removing the ligatures at 30 days, each ligature was placed in a tube containing the aforementioned solution. Yeast species were identified using chromogenic Api, ID 32, growth at 45C, and DNA amplification by PCR with panfungal primers. The results were statistically analyzed.  RESULTS: Probing depth at right second premolar sites was 1 _+ 0.7 prior to treatment and +1.14 at 3 months. Candida spp adhesion to Alastic ligatures was significantly different (Student’s t test: p  0.005) compared with metallic ligatures; the prevalence of yeasts on subgingival plaque in the studied population was  40 %; 29 % of the studied subjects showed yeast transport at both the niches at the same time. Candida albicans (67% of cases) was the most prevalent species, followed by Candida dublinienses (13.5), Candida glabrata (7.6%), and other species (11.9%). CONCLUSION: Alastic ligatures show greater fungal adhesion than metal ligatures. They can constitute a niche for the growth and spread of these microorganisms.