Polydimethylsiloxane as a Tooth Surface-Bound Carrier of Triclosan: a New Concept in Chemical Plaque Inhibition

Abstract

Polydimethylsiloxane (silicone oil) has an extremely low surface tension: It spreads over solid surfaces and forms a tenacious film which is hydrophobic and water-repellent. It is known that this liquid binds to hydroxyapatite and to dental enamel and changes the properties of these solids. It has been suggested that silicone oil may be applied to teeth and serve as a reservoir of lipid-soluble antibacterial substances which presumably will be slowly released into saliva due to their low solubility in water. The present paper reviews recent papers where this hypothesis is tested in vitro and in vivo. It was first shown that test tubes treated with the combination silicone oil and the lipid-soluble agent triclosan acquired a layer which inhibited bacterial growth in a culture of Streptococcus sobrinus (OMZ 176) which was grown in sucrose. Both growth in the medium and polysaccharide adsorption to the glass wall were inhibited. Silicone oil alone inhibited polysaccharide adsorption to some degree, whereas the growth in the medium was not affected. In a similar clinical plaque-inhibition study, topical application of silicone oil/triclosan to the teeth of a test panel showed marked plaque inhibition, particularly giving an increased number of teeth with scores of 0 (no plaque). In a study where silicone oil and triclosan were incorporated into a toothpaste, improved gingival health was observed after a period of one month. It is concluded that the use of silicone oil/ triclosan in the manner described above represents a new principle in preventive dentistry. The results obtained seem to warrant further experiments with this combination.

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