Abstract
Oral health reflects the general health, and it is fundamental to well-being and quality of life. An infection in the oral cavity can be associated with serious complications in human health. Local therapy of these infections offers many advantages over systemic drug administration, targeting directly to the diseased area while minimizing systemic side effects. Specialized drug delivery systems into the oral cavity have to be designed in such a fashion that they resist to the aqueous environment that is constantly bathed in saliva and subject to mechanical forces. Additionally, a prolonged release of drug should also be provided, which would enhance the efficacy and also decrease the repeated dosing. This review is aimed to summarize the current most relevant findings related to local drug delivery of various drug groups for prevention and treatment of infections (viral, bacterial, fungal) and infection-related manifestations in the oral cavity. Current therapeutic challenges in regard to effective local drug delivery systems will be discussed, and the recent approaches to overcome these obstacles will be reviewed. Finally, future prospects will be overviewed to promote novel strategies that can be implemented in clinical management for prevention and treatment of oral infections.Graphical abstract
Highlights
The oral cavity, which is the main entrance for two systems vital to human function and physiology, the gastrointestinal and respiratory systems, consists of the teeth, the buccal, sublingual and gingival mucosa, soft and hard palate, and tongue (Fig. 1)
Appropriate drugs and delivery systems are crucial to reduce /eliminate the local as well as the systemic complications related to oral infections
Topical use of antivirals and antimicrobials has been successfully used for treatment of oral infections; there are still some obstacles to be addressed related to the drugs used as well as the delivery systems
Summary
The oral cavity, which is the main entrance for two systems vital to human function and physiology, the gastrointestinal and respiratory systems, consists of the teeth, the buccal, sublingual and gingival mucosa, soft and hard palate, and tongue (Fig. 1). - Prolonged drug release - Significant decrease in clinical parameters - Antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli - Prolonged drug release - Enhanced antimicrobial activity against S. aureus and S. mutans in presence of chitosan
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