Evaluation of the efficacy of plaque reduction and gingival health among 6-12 years old school children before and after a short term daily intake of probiotic lozenge - A comparative study.

Context: Probiotics are defined as live microorganisms which when delivered in adequate amounts provides health benefit in the host. Dietary supplements like lozenge seem to be the easy and acceptable vehicle for ingestion of probiotics in young children.

Aim: To assess the efficacy of probiotics in plaque reduction and gingival health among 6-12 years school children before and after short term daily intake of Probiotic lozenge.

Settings and Design: This Comparative study was conducted among 60 children in the age group 6-12 years. Thirty children in experimental group; who were given lozenge containing probiotic bacteria twice daily, one in the morning and another in the evening after brushing for one month. The placebo lozenge group also followed the same protocol.

Statistical Analysis Used: SPSS version 21.

Results: The Probiotic lozenge group was found to have statistically significant reduction in plaque scores when compared to that of the placebo group with P < 0.001 and there was also a significant improvement in gingival health.

Conclusion: An effective reduction in plaque accumulation and gingival inflammation was found with the use of probiotic lozenges and hence proved the therapeutic value of the same.