Probiotics in Oral Health and Disease: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Purpose: Probiotics may exclude or antagonize oral pathogens and be useful to prevent oral dysbiosis and treat oral diseases. The objective of this review was to assess the benefits of probiotics in oral health and disease, and in dental practice; Methods: Primary articles published between January 2012 and 30 December 2020 with full text available were searched in PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, B-on, and SciELO; Results: The electronic search identified 361 references of which 91 (25.2%) met all the inclusion criteria. In total, data from 5374 participants with gingivitis, periodontitis, peri-implantitis, caries, orthodontic conditions, halitosis, or oral conditions associated with chemo-radiotherapy were included. Despite major inconsistencies between clinical trials, probiotics have been found to contribute to reduce S. mutans counts (L. paracasei SD1), reduce probing depth in chronic periodontitis (B. animalis subsp. lactis DN-173010 with L. reuteri), reduce levels of volatile sulfur compounds and halitosis (L. salivarius WB21), treat oral mucositis and improve the quality of life of patients undergoing cancer chemo-radiotherapy (L. brevis CD2). Combinations of probiotic bacteria tend to lead to higher clinical efficacy than any individual probiotic agent; Conclusion: Oral probiotics influence favorably the oral microbiota and provide benefits to the oral ecosystem in periodontal diseases, cariology, halitosis, orthodontics and management of oral mucositis resulting from cancer treatment. However, the use of probiotics in dental practice or in self-management preventive strategies requires additional well controlled clinical trials to determine the most effective probiotic combinations, the most appropriate probiotic vehicle, and the frequency of administration.

Revisiting Standard and Novel Therapeutic Approaches in Halitosis: A Review

“…Several studies have shown that probiotic bacterial strains, originating from the indigenous oral microbiota of healthy humans, may have potential application as adjuvants for the prevention and treatment of halitosis [ 113 ]. The aim is to prevent the re-establishment of unwanted bacteria and thus limit the recurrence of oral malodor for an extended period.…”

Managing Oral Health in the Context of Antimicrobial Resistance

“…In recent years, a significant number of studies and systematic reviews have been suggesting and showing the benefits of using probiotics as a preventive and therapeutic method for oral infections [ 135 , 136 ]. Several mechanisms of action have been assigned to probiotics to account for their potential as therapeutic treatments for oral diseases, including hampering pathogens colonization by direct competition for nutrients or binding sites, producing antibacterial compounds (e.g., bacteriocins) targeting specific oral pathogens, altering oral biofilm composition and function, modulating signaling and metabolic pathways locally, and improving the immune-inflammatory response [ 135 , 137 ].…”

Effect of Lactobacillus reuteri on Gingival Inflammation and Composition of the Oral Microbiota in Patients Undergoing Treatment with Fixed Orthodontic Appliances: Study Protocol of a Randomized Control Trial

“…Probiotics are live organisms that confer health benefits to the host when administered in adequate amounts [8]. Since it is recognized that changes in the composition of dental biofilm play a key role in the initiation and progression of periodontal diseases, the administration of probiotic strains has been proposed to be useful in the prevention and treatment of these diseases [9][10][11][12]. Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are the most frequently described probiotics among which Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) is one of the most studied strains [13].…”