Clinical and microbiologic effects of commercially available gel and powder containing Acacia arabica on gingivitis

Abstract

Background: There is a need for an anti-plaque agent that can be used on a daily basis without the side effects of antibacterial chemicals such as chlorhexidine. The present study was designed to evaluate the clinical and microbiologic effects of commercially available gel and powder containing Acacia arabica in subjects with gingivitis. Methods: One hundred and twenty subjects with chronic generalized gingivitis were selected and randomly divided into four groups: Group 1 -placebo group; Group 2 -Acacia arabica gel group; Group 3 -Acacia arabica powder group; and Group 4 -1% chlorhexidine gel group. Microbial counts of plaque samples, the gingival index of Loe and Silness and the plaque index were evaluated at baseline, 6 weeks, 12 weeks and 24 weeks. Microbial counts of plaque samples were evaluated at all visits. Results: Acacia arabica gel and powder showed significant clinical improvement in gingival and plaque index scores as compared to a placebo. This improvement was comparable to 1% chlorhexidine gel. The difference between gel and powder with regard to clinical and microbiological parameters was not found to be significant at any time interval. Conclusions: Both Acacia arabica gel and powder may be useful herbal formulations for chemical plaque control in subjects with gingivitis.

The efficacy of chlorhexidine dentifrice or gel on plaque, clinical parameters of gingival inflammation and tooth discoloration: a systematic review

“…Various other studies have allowed subjects to apply a pea‐sized amount of CHX gel on the teeth gums with the index finger and leaving it undisturbed for approximately 5 min before rinsing. This resulted in significant improvement (as evaluated in studies 6–24 weeks) over the placebo gel group on plaque scores and the gingival index . The outcome of these studies taken together with the result of this review indicates that CHX gel is not effective in combination with toothbrushing but is effective when applied with a finger to teeth and gums.…”

Efficacy of a commercially available multi-herbal formulation in periodontal therapy

“…This can be attributed to the mechanical removal of microbial plaque by scaling procedure with the added benefits of anti-inflammatory, astringent, and antimicrobial actions exerted by Periocare ® ingredients. In a similar study by Pradeep AR et al .,[11] the oral microbial load was found to be reduced after topical application of a herbal medicament containing mainly Acacia arabica . The results of our study also reported a reduction in the oral microbial flora in group I and group II subjects, which could be attributed to the antimicrobial action of various components of the test product used.…”

Efficacy of herbal dentifrice on the prevention of plaque and gingivitis as compared to conventional dentifrice: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…The PubMed-MEDLINE, Cochrane CENTRAL, IndMed, and other sources identified 1378 unique records which were screened by title and abstract [ Figure 2 ]. After full-text reading, 10 records[ 15 16 17 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 ] were excluded. This exclusion resulted in 19 full-text articles plus 3 unpublished records.…”