COMPARISON OF ANTIFUNGAL EFFECTS OF COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE HERBAL MOUTHWASHES AND CHLORHEXIDINE AGAINST CANDIDA ALBICANS IN DIABETIC PATIENTS: AN IN VITRO STUDY

ABSTRACTObjective: Candida albicans is a part of the normal flora of the mouth in diabetes mellitus (DM) patients. Periodontitis is one of the main complicationsin diabetic patients. Mechanical and chemical plaque control are the most productive methods in preventing periodontal diseases in the oral cavity.The objective of this study is to compare the in vitro effect of herbal mouthwashes and chlorhexidine (CHX) against C. albicans.Methods: Saliva samples were obtained from diabetic patients reporting for treatment to Saveetha medical college. C. albicans was cultured from thesalivary sample. A yeast suspension was made by sub culturing the C. albicans. The mouthwashes used in the study are HiOra regular (0.2%), HiOrasensitive (0.5%), and clohex plus (CHX gluconate 0.02%) mouthwashes. The fungal suspension was spread on Sabouraud’s dextrose agar (SDA) plateswith a sterile swab. Subsequently, wells of 6 mm in diameter were made with a suitable distance using sterile cork borer on pre-inoculated agar platesand filled with 100 µl of each mouthwashes. From the zones of inhibition seen, antimicrobial activity was expressed in terms of average diameter ofthe zones of inhibition measured.Results: Using HiOra regular mouthwash, 13/18 (72%) wells were found to show zone of inhibition ≥20 mm. In HiOra sensitive mouthwash, only9/18 (50%) showed inhibition zone ≥20 mm. With effect of regular CHX mouthwash, none of the strains showed the zone of inhibition to be ≥20 mm.Most of the strains responded well with all the three mouthwashes.Conclusion: Among the 2 herbal mouthwashes, HiOra regular mouthwash was most effective in inhibiting the candidal growth when compared tothe HiOra sensitive. HiOra regular mouthwash still showed better inhibitory actions when compared to the regular CHX mouthwash and the candidalspecies showed increased sensitivity to it.Keywords: Candida albicans, Chlorhexidine mouthwash, Diabetes mellitus, Herbal mouthwashes, Zone of inhibition.