A comparison of the effects of mouthwash obtained from green tea and chlorhexidine mouthwash on the oral health of patients admitted in the intensive care unit

BACKGROUND AND AIM: In a normal non-diseased person, the throat condition is favorable for the growth of different germs. This investigation intended to assess the impression of mouthwash obtained from green tea and chlorhexidine on the oral sanitation in intubated subjects in the intensive care unit (ICU). METHODS: In this clinical trial study, 46 subjects, who were being carried out mechanical ventilation in the ICU, were recruited. For the first group, mouthwashing was implemented with chlorhexidine solution for four days and then with green tea solution for another four days. In the second group, we first mouthwashed the cases with green tea solution, followed by another four days of mouthwashing with chlorhexidine solution. Ultimately, checklist of oral health evaluation was filled and compared between the studied groups. RESULTS: On the first day, no statistically significant difference was detected between the two groups. Nonetheless, the amount of food leftover in teeth showed significant difference (P = 0.020). Furthermore, we found no difference in the mucosal and plaque score criteria at the beginning of the study between the two groups. On the other side, no significant difference was observed in the oral health settings between the groups after conducting mouthwashing. However, the two groups had statistically significant difference with respect to the plaque scoring criteria (P = 0.029). CONCLUSION: It can be postulated that both green tea and chlorhexidine mouthwash possess similar impressions on the oral sanitation. Nonetheless, since green tea is obtained from natural compounds and is easily available, it is suggested to be utilized instead of a chemical compound, namely chlorhexidine.