To Ascertain If Bracket Material Difference (Polycarbonate And Stainless Steel) Has An Effect On Streptococcus Mutans Count In Orthodontic Patients When Used With Herbal Dentifrices.

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of the current study was to determine how different bracket materials (Polycarbonate and Stainless Steel) affected the number of Streptococcus mutans in orthodontic patients using herbal toothpaste.

Material and methods: Thirty individuals receiving fixed orthodontic treatment were included in this prospective analysis. One tooth from each patient's first and fourth quadrant of the mouth, totaling 60 teeth, were included in the study. Plaque samples were taken at varied intervals of time. The dilution plating method was used to conduct the bacteriological study. SPSS software tallied the data and performed statistical analyses on it. Each group was compared using a one-way ANOVA. Individual herbal dentifrices were compared across different brackets using multiple comparison tests (Tukey HSD).

Results: Streptococcus mutans count was found to be slightly low with stainless steel brackets at mean difference 2.5333 & high with polycarbonate brackets at mean difference 2.6667 among 30 orthodontic patients using herbal tooth paste. A statistically significant difference between them, however, was not present.

Conclusion: With herbal tooth paste, both stainless steel and polycarbonate brackets behaved well and were clinically effective in lowering Streptococcus mutans colony counts nearby.