Efficacy of 1% versus 0.2% Chlorhexidine Gel in Reducing the Frequency of Alveolar Osteitis following Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: Randomized Clinical Trial

Alveolar osteitis (AO) is a common phenomenon in the extraction of impacted third molars. As it causes discomfort and affects the patient’s quality of life, it is necessary to reduce the risk of AO. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of two CHX gel concentrations on the frequency of AO. The inclusion criteria were being 18-30 years old and having bilateral impacted mandibular third molars with moderate difficulty level based on Pederson scale. Both teeth extracted at the same session and one socket randomly received 1% chlorhexidine (CHX) and the other 0.2% CHX gel. The outcome variable was frequency of AO. Data were collected in SPSS software and analyzed using t-test and chi-square tests. 40 patients with mean age of 21 years completed the study period. 9 (11.25%) sockets developed AO. No significant difference was found between the frequency of AO in applying 1% gel (10%) and 0.2% gel (12.5%) based on chi-square test (P-value > 0.05). Although no side effect was observed in applying 1% CHX gel, no additional benefit was also obtained.