Abstract

VILASECA VELASQUEZ, Carolina Olivia; ESPINOZA FUERTES, David  and  APRILI JUSTINIANO, Laura. Assessment of Cariogenic activity in Dental Bacterial Plaque in the Pediatric population. Rev. Cien. Tec. In. [online]. 2023, vol.21, n.27, pp.57-66. ISSN 2225-8787.  https://doi.org/10.56469/rcti.v21i27.885.

There are several methods that allow evaluating cariogenic risk, including saliva pH, quantification of the levels of cariogenic germs, mainly Streptococcus mutans and lactobacillus. An easy to apply and inexpensive method consists of identifying cariogenic bacterial plaque using a 10% sucrose solution. This technique consists of measuring the variation in pH of dental plaque before and after the administration of this solution, a decrease in pH values are interpreted as a cariogenic plaque, consisting mainly of S. mutans. This microorganism has the property of metabolizing sucrose, transforming it into organic acids capable of demineralizing the hard structures of the tooth.

A total of 33 children who attended the Pediatric Dentistry clinic of the Universidad San Francisco Xavier participated in the study. Caries indices were determined by the klune technique and the dental plaque index by the simplified oral hygiene technique (IHOS). According to the plaque index values, the caries index detected was 76.48%. The participants presented regular to poor dental hygiene. The technique of determining cariogenic risk according to the pH of bacterial plaque with the sucrose solution was a good indicator of cariogenic risk according to the values of Student’s T-test p <0.05 with 95% confidence. The data obtained with the detection of pH of saliva turned out to be a good indicator of caries risk.

Keywords : Caries; Sucrose; Streptococcus mutans; Dental bacterial plaque.

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