Antibacterial activity of triclosan incorporated glass ionomer cements - An in vitro pilot study

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate the antibacterial activity of glass ionomer cement impregnated with different concentrations (0.5%, 1.25% and 2.5%) of a non releasing bactericide - Triclosan (TC) against two common cariogenic bacteria - Lactobacillus acidophilus and Streptococcus mutans; and to compare Triclosan incorporated GIC with chlorhexidine (CHX) incorporated GIC (2.5%) in terms of antibacterial activity. Methods: Chlorhexidine or Triclosan were added to glass ionomer cement powder to achieve 2.5% CHX - GIC (positive control - Group II), 0.5%, 1.25% and 2.5% TC-GIC (experimental groups III, IV and V respectively) formulations. Restorative glass ionomer cement (Fuji IX GC - Group I) served as negative control. The powder and liquid were mixed and inserted into the wells punched in agar plates (10mm × 4mm). The agar diffusion method was used to determine the antibacterial activity of the cements after 1, 7 and 30 days. Mean values were compared between different study groups using One-way ANOVA and Tukey's HSD procedure at a significance level of 5%. Results: Triclosan incorporated GIC was more effective against L.acidophilus and S.mutans than Chlorhexidine incorporated GIC. Triclosan at a concentration of 2.5% was more effective than at lower concentrations. At all time periods studied, the maximum zone of inhibition against L.acidophilus was produced by Group V. Against S.mutans, on days 1, 7 and 30, there was no significant difference between Groups II and IV (p>0.05), while the other groups showed significant differences. Conclusion: The use of triclosan as an antibacterial additive in GIC holds promise and further clinical research is needed in this direction.