RESUMEN
Background and aim: in dental caries procedure, the etiologic role of plaque is not deniable. The goal of this research was to evaluate the influence of two kinds of chewing gums containing xylitol and sucrose on the accumulation of bacterial plaque through measuring plaque index
Methods and Materials: ninety volunteer students were divided into three groups of A, B and C. After prophylaxis, students, at the first stage, were given gums containing sucrose or xylitol and asked to use delivered gums instead of brushing for 48 hours. The amount of plaque was finally measured by turesky plaque index. At the second stage, the type of gum was changed and plaque was again measured in the same way. [an interval of three days was between the first and second stages]. Data were analyzed by SPSS statistical software and 1-student
Results: the comparison between these two groups showed that gums containing xylitol prevented plaque accumulation more than sucrose ones. In-group A: average plaque in dices after using gums containing xylitol and sucrose were 1.88 and 2.28, respectively. In-group B average plaque index after using sucrose gum was 2.03 and after using xylitol gum was 1.63. In-group C, controls which did not use any kind of gum, average plaque index was 2.13. Therefore, statistically significant differences were found, in plaque index, after using two different types of gums in groups A and B [P<0.001]
Conclusion: sucrose free gums especially those containing xylitol are recommended for microbial plaque elimination