Antimicrobial Efficacy of Commercially Available Toothpastes - An In vitro Study

Background: The use of antimicrobial chemotherapeutic agent has been proposed as a means of reducing the levels of oral bacteria. Many chemotherapeutic agents claim to have antimicrobial properties. Hence this in vitro study had been undertaken. Methods: This in vitro study comprised of seven toothpastes which have been tested for their antimicrobial activity against three oral pathogens namely, Streptococcus mutans, Escherichia coli and Candida albicans by well agar diffusion assay at the dilution of 1: 1, 1: 2, 1: 4, 1: 8 and 1:16. Results: Study results showed that toothpaste 'five' with sodium fluoride and sylodent as main ingredients showed maximum zone of inhibition against Streptococcus mutans where as against Candida albicans, toothpaste 'six' with xylitol and sodium fluoride as main ingredients showed maximum zone of inhibition. And against E. coli, toothpaste 'one' with Triclosan and Zinc sulphate as main ingredients showed maximum zone of inhibition among all toothpastes. It was observed that tooth paste 'six' with sodium fluoride and Neem, Meswak as main ingredient showed minimum zone of inhibition against Streptococcus mutans at 1: 1 dilution among seven toothpastes used in the present study. Conclusion: In the present study, it has been demonstrated that triclosan containing toothpastes formulations are more effective in control of oral micro flora.