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| LETTER TO THE EDITOR |
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| Year : 2015 | Volume
: 6
| Issue : 4 | Page : 163 |
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Re: Perspectives of oil pulling therapy in dental practice
Sumit Sharma1, Sanjeev Kumar Salaria1, Japneet Sharma2, Amritpal Kaur1
1 Department of Periodontology and Oral Implantology, Surendera Dental College and Research Institute, Sriganganagar, Rajasthan, India
2 Government Ayurveda Dispensary, Faridkot, Punjab, India
| Date of Web Publication | 27-Nov-2015 |
Correspondence Address:
Sumit Sharma
Department of Periodontology and Oral Implantology, Surendera Dental College and Research Institute, Sriganganagar - 335 001, Rajasthan
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/2155-8213.170646
How to cite this article:
Sharma S, Salaria SK, Sharma J, Kaur A. Re: Perspectives of oil pulling therapy in dental practice. Dent Hypotheses 2015;6:163 |
Sir,
This is in reference to the review article "Perspectives of oil pulling in dental practice" published in Dent Hypotheses 2013;4:131-4 by Lakshmi et al. [1]
We read the article with great interest. The authors quoted a randomized controlled triple blind clinical trial conducted by Asokan et al. (2008), [2] "to evaluate the efficacy of oil pulling therapy using sesame oil on dental caries causing Streptococcus mutans count in plaque and saliva, plaque induced gingivitis." Lakshmi et al. reported that the study demonstrated a significant reduction in the colony count of S. mutans in plaque sample and decrease in plaque and gingival index score in the study and control groups. There were a few flaws in the authors' review report: (I) the quoted aim of the study was inaccurate and incomplete with (a) an irrelevant mention of plaque-induced gingivitis, and (b) the omission of the fact that the aim of the study was not only to evaluate the efficacy of oil pulling on S. mutans count in plaque and saliva but also to compare its efficacy with chlorhexidine, (II) the authors misreported the Asokan et al., 2008 study at certain points: First, the positive effect of oil pulling on plaque and gingival scores. Actually, Asokan et al. conducted a study in 2009 to evaluate the "effect of oil pulling on plaque-induced gingivitis; A Randomized Controlled Triple blind study." [3] This study reported significant reduction in the plaque index and modified gingival index and observed its efficacy comparable to the chlorhexidine group. Possibly, the similarity between these two studies of 2008 and 2009 by Asokan et al. led to the confusion. Second, the article said that "the use of sesame oil pulling therapy is an effective home remedy than chlorhexidine mouth washes and recommended in improving oral health in India," whereas the study reported a statistically significant reduction in the mean S. Mutans in the plaque and saliva in both the oil pulling (test) group and the chlorhexidine (control) group but the chlorhexidine group had overall better results.
Also, in our opinion the oral health of an individual depends on many factors such as local, systemic, environmental, and genetic factors as well as habits and not only on reduction in the S. mutans count in plaque and saliva.
Reply from the author
No reply was received from the author.
| References | |  |
| 1. | Lakshmi T, Rajendran R, Krishnan V. Perspectives of oil pulling therapy in dental practice. Dent Hypotheses 2013;4:131-4.   |
| 2. | Asokan S, Rathan J, Muthu MS, Rathna PV, Emmadi P, Raghuraman, Chamundeswari. Effect of oil pulling on Streptococcus mutans count in plaque and saliva using Dentocult SM strip mutans test: A randomized, controlled, triple-blind study. J Indian Soc Pedod Prev Dent 2008;26:12-7. [ PUBMED] |
| 3. | Asokan S, Emmadi P, Chamundeswari R. Effect of oil pulling on plaque induced gingivitis: A randomized, controlled, triple-blind study. Indian J Dent Res 2009;20:47-51. [ PUBMED] |
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