Background: Chlorhexidine mouthwash has earned eponym of gold standard to treat and/or prevent periodontal diseases. However, the present study was carried out to explore an alternative herbal mouthwash.
Aim: To compare the anti-plaque and anti-gingivitis efficacy of a 0.25% lemongrass oil mouthwash to that of 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash.
Materials and methods: A double-blinded parallel designed clinical trial with 60 subjects was taken for the study. Baseline plaque index (PI) & gingival index (GI) score was recorded. Oral prophylaxis was done and the plaque score was set at zero. Then, subjects were randomly allocated into 3 groups (N=20 in each): 0.25% lemongrass oil mouthwash, 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash and oral prophylaxis only. Subjects were asked to swish with respective mouthwash twice daily for 21 days. Subjects were again re-evaluated on 14(th) and 21(st) day for GI and PI. Comparison of the mean difference among the variables was performed by parametric tests.
Results: Lemongrass oil mouthwash group showed highest reduction in GI & PI at both 14(th) and 21(st) day, which was statistically significant (p≤0.05).
Conclusion: Lemongrass oil mouthwash can also be used as a good herbal alternative to chlorhexidine mouthwash, so further studies are needed.
Keywords: Anti-oxidants; Essential oil; Non-surgical therapy.