ABSTRACT

The study sample consisted of eleven patients (6 female, 5 male) with a mean age of 14.8±1.4 years, receiving fixed apliance orthodontic treatment. Before the start of treatment oral hygiene motivation was given to the patients. Oral Hygiene Index (OHI), and Plaque Bleeding Index (PBI) scores were recorded during the orthodontic treatment with monthly intervals (1, 2, 3 months). The subjects used 5 ml of 2% chlorhexidine gluconate mouthrinse twice a day (morning, night) for a 3 months period (4, 5, 6 months). The correlation before chlorhexidine application between OHI and PBI was statistically significant (r=0.670) while the correlation during chlorhexidine application was insignificant (r=0.359). There were significant reductions in OHI and PBI scores associated with the use of the chlorhexidine mouthrinse.