Factors in Physiological Breath Odor.

Abstract

To identify factors associated with "morning breath" (physiological breath odor preceding breakfast) in healthy adults, we assessed breath odor, analyzed intraoral factors, and collected saliva and tongue coat samples incubated to ascertain the relationship between intraoral bacteria and breath odor. Subjects were 44 healthy men with a mean age of 24.1 years.The breath odor of each was assessed by an organoleptic test and quantified using a portable sulphide monitor (Halimeter RH-17 E(R)) and gas chromatography.Results were as follows: Breath odor was organoleptically detectable in all subjects. When subjects were categorized based on organoleptic tests, a significant difference was seen in Halimeter values and concentrations of 3 volatile sulphide compounds (VSCs) . A significant correlation was seen between organoleptic measurement and Halimeter values or VSC concentration.Among VSC concentrations, the correlation was highest between total VSC and hydrogen sulphide levels. Tougue coat scores and turbidity tended to increase with the organoleptic score. Higher tongue coat scores tended to be associated with greater turbidity.An increase in odor score coincided with a significant in counts for total bacteria, aerobic bacteria, streptococci, and anaerobic bacteria in the tongue coat. No significant differences in bacteria counts were seen, however, in saliva. Significant correlations existed between tongue coat score/turbidity and counts for total bacteria, aerobic bacteria, streptococci, and anaerobic bacteria in the tongue coat.Our findings suggest 3 broad conclusions: the tongue coat is the major contributor toward morning breath ; halitosis severity depends on the total number of bacteria in the tongue coat; and hydrogen sulphide is the primary component of halitosis.

The relationship between physiologic halitosis and periodontopathic bacteria of the tongue and gingival sulcus

“…VSC measurements VSC analysis was performed by gas chromatography according to the method of Saito et al 5 The amounts of hydrogen sulfi de (H 2 S), methyl mercaptan (CH 3 SH), dimethylsulfi de ((CH 3 ) 2 S), and the total for all three (total VSCs) were measured with a portable sulfi de monitor (Halimeter RH-17, Interscan, Chatsworth, CA, USA). The Halimeter measurements were performed according to the method of Satoh et al 21 …”

“…In 1999, a Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare survey conducted on approximately 30 000 Japanese citizens reported that, after periodontal disease and tooth decay, 14.5% of the respondents were concerned about halitosis. 1 Various causes of halitosis have been identifi ed: it can originate in the oral cavity such as from severe tooth decay, 2 periodontal disease, 3,4 and tongue plaque; [4][5][6] in the ear, nose, and throat, including from diseases such as paranasal sinusitis, chronic rhinitis, and chronic tonsillitis; 7 and it can originate from other diseases such as diabetes 8 and renal failure, 9,10 albeit more rarely. 11 Meanwhile, several reports have described the presence of halitosis even without any particular oral or systemic disease, such as upon wakening in the morning, or associated with an empty stomach or being tired.…”

Change of Oral Conditions after Combined Use of a Tongue Brush and Toothbrush: A Pilot Study

“…Counting was repeated 3 times and the mean value was calculated. To assess bad breath, air from the oral cavity was collected with a syringe and H 2 S concentration was determined using Oral Chroma CHM-2® (FIS, Osaka, Japan) [12] . The data were compared between before and after cleaning in Study 1.…”

Relation between counts of periodontopathic bacteria in the tongue coat of healthy subjects and the concentration of volatile sulfur compounds in their breath

“…These data have been clarified recently by the development of gas chromatography (GC) [8][9][10] and flame photometric detectors (FPD) 11,12) . Saito et al reported that the amounts of these substances correlated with the total number of bacteria and the number of streptococci, aerobic and anaerobic bacteria in tongue coat 6) .There are some reports of the bacteria in tongue…”