Gingival index (GI) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash may reduce the Gingival Index versus blank control in the short term (WMD -0.54, 95% CI -0.96 to -0.13), but with very high heterogeneity the evidence is very uncertain (very low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Gingival index (GI) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash probably reduces the Gingival Index versus placebo in the short term (WMD -0.45, 95% CI -0.70 to -0.20; low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Total bacteria (colony count) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash may reduce total bacteria colony counts versus blank control in the short term, but the evidence is very uncertain (very low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Presence of dry socket · Adults (>18 years) having permanent tooth extraction (predominantly mandibular third molars)
Chlorhexidine rinse (0.12% and 0.2%, pre- and post-extraction) probably leads to lower presence of dry socket compared with placebo or no treatment (moderate certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Adverse events · Adults (>18 years) having permanent tooth extraction (predominantly mandibular third molars)
1 finding from 1 review
3 trials reported no adverse events. 1 study reported adverse events (alterations in taste, bad taste, staining) in 24/62 in chlorhexidine group versus 0/40 in placebo group, Peto OR = 8.42 (95% CI 3.31 to 21.39). A…
6 studies
GRADE not reported
Incidence of VAP · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
Chlorhexidine (mouthrinse or gel), as part of oral hygiene care probably leads to lower incidence of VAP compared with placebo or usual care (moderate certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Caregivers' preferences for oral hygiene care · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
The review found no eligible studies for this question.
1 finding from 1 review
Adverse effects · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
1 finding from 1 review
All‐cause mortality · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
Chlorhexidine (mouthrinse or gel), as part of oral hygiene care showed no clear difference in mortality compared with placebo or usual care (moderate certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Plaque index (PI) / oral hygiene · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
1 finding from 1 review
Duration of mechanical ventilation · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
It is very uncertain whether chlorhexidine (mouthrinse or gel), as part of oral hygiene care changes duration of mechanical ventilation compared with placebo or usual care (very low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Duration of ICU stay · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
Chlorhexidine (mouthrinse or gel), as part of oral hygiene care showed no clear difference in duration of ICU stay compared with placebo or usual care (low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Cost / economic data · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
The review found no eligible studies for this question.
1 finding from 1 review
Duration of systemic antibiotic use · Critically ill patients (adults and children) receiving mechanical ventilation in ICU
Chlorhexidine (mouthrinse or gel), as part of oral hygiene care showed no clear difference in duration of systemic antibiotic use compared with placebo or usual care; GRADE not reported.
1 finding from 1 review
Organoleptic assessment of halitosis (mean change from baseline) · Adults over 18 years with a clinical or self-assessed diagnosis of halitosis, without significant comorbidity (e.g. diabetes) or…
1 finding from 1 review
Winkel 2003 (2-week trial): mean change (SD) in organoleptic score (scale 0 to 5). 0.05% chlorhexidine + 0.05% cetylpyridinium chloride + 0.14% zinc lactate: -1.13 (1.1), baseline 2.8 (0.5) to 1.5 (1.0) at day 14, P <…
1 study · 40 participants
GRADE not reported
Volatile sulphur compounds (VSC), gas chromatography · Adults over 18 years with a clinical or self-assessed diagnosis of halitosis, without significant comorbidity (e.g. diabetes) or…
1 finding from 1 review
Winkel 2003: mean change (SD) in peak VSC (ppb). Mouthrinse: -120 (92), baseline 292 (141) to 172 (104) at day 14, P < 0.005; Placebo: 8 (145), baseline 352 (161) to 360 (254). The mouthrinse caused a significantly…
1 study · 40 participants
GRADE not reported
Adverse events (tongue and tooth staining) · Adults over 18 years with a clinical or self-assessed diagnosis of halitosis, without significant comorbidity (e.g. diabetes) or…
1 finding from 1 review
Winkel 2003: significantly more tongue staining (P < 0.001) and tooth staining (P < 0.002) were noted with the chlorhexidine + cetylpyridinium chloride + zinc lactate mouthrinse than with placebo.
1 study · 40 participants
GRADE not reported
Volatile sulphur compounds (VSC), halimeter · Adolescents and adults aged over 16 years with clinical or self-assessed halitosis of oral origin; excluding induced or physiological…
Halita mouthwash (chlorhexidine 0.05% + cetylpyridinium chloride… led to lower volatile sulphur compounds (VSC), halimeter compared with placebo mouthwash; GRADE not reported.
1 finding from 1 review
Adverse events · Adolescents and adults aged over 16 years with clinical or self-assessed halitosis of oral origin; excluding induced or physiological…
1 finding from 1 review
Interventions for managing halitosis 2019 · Cochrane All outcomesmean 2 weeks
Adverse events (Table 6). Risk with placebo mouthwash: None reported. Risk with halita mouthwash: tongue staining was seen in patients who gargled, rather than rinsed. 40 participants (1 RCT). Certainty: VERY LOW.
1 study · 40 participants
Very low
Dentist-reported organoleptic test (OLT) score (scale 0 to 5) · Adolescents and adults aged over 16 years with clinical or self-assessed halitosis of oral origin; excluding induced or physiological…
It is very uncertain whether halita mouthwash (chlorhexidine 0.05% + cetylpyridinium chloride… changes dentist-reported organoleptic test (OLT) score (scale 0 to 5) compared with placebo mouthwash (very low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review