Effects of solutions used in infants' oral hygiene on biofilms and oral microorganisms.

The purpose of this work was to evaluate the effects of oral hygiene solutions used for infants on biofilms formed in vitro from infants' saliva and dental plaque: ATCC reference strains A. viscosus; C. albicans; L. casei; S. mitis; S. mutans; S. oralis; S. sanguis; S. sobrinus and clinically isolated microorganisms (saliva) C. albicans, S. mitis, S. mutans, S. oralis, S. sanguis and S. sobrinus. After exposure of the oral biofilms to H2O2 diluted 1/4 to 1/16; and NaF 0.02 percent, concentrated and diluted 1/2, for 1 and 3 minutes, the viable count of microorganisms, compared to the controls was significantly reduced (p < 0.05). They also showed a significant antimicrobial effect for all the microorganisms evaluated, when compared to the control (p < 0.05). Exposure to sodium bicarbonate solution and a camomile solution, for 1 and 3 minutes, was not significantly lethal to oral biofilms nor to any microorganism evaluated, regardless of whether they were concentrated or diluted. We do not recommend the use of H2O2 but suggest using the camomile solution and NaF 0.02 percent in a rational manner for cleaning the infant's mouth.