Clinical Study of Oral-malodor Reduction by Three Oral Hygiene Regimens

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of oral hygiene regimens on reduction of oral malodor. Method: Thirty volunteer participants with the mean age of 20.2 years old were randomly divided into two roups (A and B). During the first week, both groups were instructed to brush their teeth with a scrubbing method. Subsequently, Group A used chlorine dioxide mouthwash and Group B performed tongue cleaning with a small toothbrush in addition to tooth brushing for the next three weeks. After that, both groups practiced all three oral hygiene regimens for one week. Total volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) were measured by Breathron^®. Oral health status including tongue coating was evaluated at baseline and following weekly examination. Result: There were no significant differences in all study variables at baseline between Groups A and B.There was no significant decrease in VSCs at the 1^st week examination in comparison with baseline. Significant reductions in VSCs were found from 2^nd to 4^th week examination as compared with baseline in both Groups A and B (p<0.05). At the 5^th week examination, further decrease of VSCs was observed in both groups (p<0.01). Tongue coating was significantly reduced more in Group B than Group A (p<0.05), but no significant differences were detected in plaque scores and BOP between the groups. All oral health status significantly improved at the 5^th week examination as compared with baseline (p<0.05). Conclusion: Tooth brushing did not improve oral malodor independently. Mouth washing or tongue cleaning significantly decreased oral malodor, however, the combination of tooth brushing, mouth washing and tongue cleaning was most effective for oral malodor reduction.