Plaque from carious and sound tooth surfaces, as well as saliva from children with "nursing bottle caries," contained unusually high levels of Streptococcus mutans; the levels of Streptococcus sanguis in plaque on anterior teeth and Streptococcus salivarius in saliva were unusually low. Lactobacilli were detected in nearly all plaque samples. The findings are discussed in relation to the role of S. mutans and lactobacilli in the initiation of human dental caries and diet-plaque interactions.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Fass, E.N.: Is Bottle Feeding of Milk a Factor in Dental Caries?, J Dent Child29:245-251, 1962.
2.
Ripa, L.W.: Nursing Habits and Dental Decay in Infants: "Nursing Bottle Caries," J Dent Child45:274-275, 1978.
3.
van Houte, J.: Bacterial Specificity in the Etiology of Dental Caries, Int Dent J30:305-326, 1980.
4.
Hamada, S. and Slade, H.D.: Biology, Immunology, and Cariogenicity of Streptococcus mutans, Microb Revs44 :331-384, 1980.
5.
Bibby, B.G.: Influence of Diet on the Bacterial Composition of Plaque. In: Microbial Aspects of Dental Caries, Stiles, H.M., Loesche, W.J., and O'Brien, T.C., Eds., Washington, D.C .: Information Retrieval, Inc., 1976, pp. 477-490.
6.
Moller, A.J.R. : Microbiological Examination of Root Canals and Periapical Tissues of Human Teeth, Odontol Foren Tidskr74: Nos. 5-6, 1968.
7.
van Houte, J.; Gibbons, R.J.; and Banghart , S.B.: Adherence as a Determinant of the Presence of Streptococcus salivarius and Streptococcus sanguis on the Human Tooth Surface, Arch Oral Biol15:1025-1034, 1970.
8.
Carlsson, J. : Presence of Various Types of Non-haemolytic Streptococci in Dental Plaque and in Other Sites of the Oral Cavity in Man , Odont Revy18:55-74, 1967.
9.
Edwardsson, S.: Characteristics of Caries-inducing Human Streptococci Resembling Streptococcus mutans, Arch Oral Biol13:637-646, 1968.
10.
Shklair, I.L. and Keene, H.J.: Biochemical Characterization and Distribution of Streptococcus mutans in Three Diverse Populations. In: Microbial Aspects of Dental Caries, Stiles, H.M., Loesche, W.J., and O'Brien, T.C., Eds., Washington, D.C .: Information Retrieval, Inc., 1976, pp. 201-210.
11.
Loesche, W.J. and Straffon, L.H.: Longitudinal Investigation of the Role of Streptococcus mutans in Human Fissure Decay, Infect Immun26:498-507, 1979.
12.
Loesche, W.J. ; Rowan, J.; Straffon, L.H.; and Loos, P.J.: Association of Streptococcus mutans with Human Dental Decay, Infect Immun11:1252-1260, 1975.
13.
deStoppelaar, J.D.; van Houte , J.; and Backer-Dirks, O.: The Effect of Carbohydrate Restriction on the Presence of Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus sanguis, and Iodophilic Polysaccharide-producing Bacteria in Human Dental Plaque, Caries Res4:114-123, 1970.
14.
Krasse, B. and Edwardsson, S.: The Proportional Distribution of Caries-inducing Streptococci in Various Parts of the Oral Cavity of Hamsters, Arch Oral Biol11:1137-1142, 1966.
15.
Duchin, S. and van Houte, J. : Relationship of Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli to Incipient Smooth Surface Dental Caries in Man, Arch Oral Biol23:779-786, 1978.
16.
Fitzgerald, R.J.; Fitzgerald, D.B.; Adams, B.O.; and Duany, L.F.: Cariogenicity of Human Oral Lactobacilli in Hamsters, J Dent Res59:832-837, 1980.
17.
van Houte, J.; Aasenden, R.; and Peebles, T.C.: Lactobacilli in Human Dental Plaque and Saliva, J Dent Res60:2-5, 1981.
18.
Gibbons, R.J. and van Houte , J.: Bacterial Adherence in Oral Microbial Ecology, Ann Rev of Microb29:19-44, 1975.
19.
Svanberg, M. : Streptococcus mutans in Plaque after Mouth Rinsing with Buffers of Varying pH Value, Scand J Dent Res88:76-78, 1980.
