Comparative Evaluation of Commercially Available Freeze Dried Powdered Probiotics on Mutans Streptococci Count: A Randomized, Double Blind, Clinical Study.

Objectives : Probiotic approaches are being considered to eliminate pathogenic microorganisms and are an alternative and promising way to combat infections by using harmless bacteria to displace pathogenic microorganisms. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of commercially available freeze dried powdered probiotics on mutans streptococci count among 12-15 year-old Indian schoolchildren. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted in two phases of in-vitro (phase I) and in-vivo (phase II) study, which was a double blind, randomized and placebo controlled clinical trial. A total of 33 schoolchildren between 12-15 years were included in the study. They were randomly allocated to three groups. Group A included 11 children using freeze dried Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium bifidum and Bifidobacterium lactis. Group B included 11 children using freeze dried lactic acid bacillus only. Group C included 11 children using placebo powder. The study was conducted over a period of three weeks and examination and sampling of the subjects were done on days 0 (baseline), seven, 14 and 21. Results: For both the intervention groups A and B, statistically significant reduction (P<0.05) in salivary mutans streptococci counts was recorded up to the second week. Conclusion: Oral administration of probiotics showed a short-term effect on reduction of mutans streptococci count and showed a preventive role in caries development. Key words:  Probiotics; Viridans Streptococci; Dental Caries.