Cariogenic bacteria (Mutans streptococci) · People undergoing orthodontic treatment (any age; 9 to 34 years in included studies)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash reduced Mutans streptococci versus placebo, but certainty is very low.
1 finding from 1 review
Cariogenic bacteria (Mutans streptococci) · People undergoing orthodontic treatment (any age; 9 to 34 years in included studies)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash reduced Mutans streptococci versus blank control, but certainty is very low.
1 finding from 1 review
Plaque index (PI) / oral hygiene · People undergoing orthodontic treatment (any age; 9 to 34 years in included studies)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash reduced Plaque Index versus placebo, but certainty is very low.
1 finding from 1 review
Probing pocket depth (PPD/PD) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash may reduce pocket probing depth versus placebo in the short term (low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Plaque · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Chlorhexidine mouthwash may reduce the Plaque Index versus blank control in the short term (WMD -0.70, 95% CI -1.12 to -0.27), but 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 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
Incidence of initial caries around brackets, aesthetic-zone teeth only · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
When only aesthetic-zone teeth (incisors and canines) were considered, two studies reported a significant reduction in initial caries incidence favoring fluoride mouthrinse (ungraded, narrative; no pooled estimate).
1 finding from 1 review
Incidence of proximal (interdental) caries lesions from bitewing radiographs · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Only one included study assessed proximal caries incidence from bitewing radiographs; it was not included in the meta-analysis and no pooled estimate is available (ungraded).
1 finding from 1 review
Incidence of initial enamel caries / white spot lesions adjacent to bracket base (subject level, dichotomized) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
Adding a fluoride mouthrinse to daily fluoride toothpaste produced a small reduction in the incidence of initial caries/white spot lesions adjacent to brackets (pooled risk difference -0.07, 95% CI -0.14 to -0.01; 5 studies, 491 subjects), but the authors judged the overall evidence inconclusive (ungraded).
1 finding from 1 review
Side effects or other adverse events · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances)
No adverse effects were reported in any of the seven included studies (ungraded).
1 finding from 1 review