Assessment of 4% ocimum sanctum and 0.2% chlorhexidine irrigation as an adjunct to scaling & root planing in management of chronic periodontitis-a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background: Ocimum sanctum is a plant which is of great medicinal value and has various properties for curing and preventing disease.Hence a study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of Ocimum sanctumon bacterial plaque and its comparison with Chlorhexidine gluconate which is considered as the gold standard. Materials and Methods:30 chronic periodontitis patients were randomized into two groups. Group A received scaling and root planing plus intra-pocket irrigation of Ocimum sanctum (n= 15) and Group B received scaling and root planing plus intra-pocket irrigation with Chlorhexidine gluconate (n = 15).Clinical parameters including the plaque index, gingival index, pocket probing depth and clinical attachment level were assessed at baseline and 30 days. Statistical analysis was carried out using SPSS version 17. Statistical significance of P ≤ 0.001 was considered. Results:Our data showed that Ocimum sanctum was equally effective in reducing periodontal indices as chlorhexidine. Significant reduction in all clinical parameters were observed over a period of four weeks in both the test and the control groups. Conclusion:The results of the present study revealed that subgingival irrigation with 4% Ocimum sanctum may prove to be effective owing to its ability in reducing plaque accumulation, gingival inflammation and bleeding andhas no side effects as compared to chlorhexidine. Keywords: Chlorhexidine, Ocimum sanctum, Irrigation, Periodontitis