A study to assess the plaque inhibitory action of a new zinc citrate toothpaste formulation.

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial looks at Oils and Toothpastes.

Present formulations have included triclosan which is thought to contribute major antibacterial/antiplaque effects.

Who Took Part

According to the abstract, 24 volunteers were involved.

PubMed indexes the participants as adults and middle-aged adults, both men and women.

Toothpaste slurry rinses were used over a 96-h period by 24 volunteers, whilst omitting all other oral hygiene procedures.

How the Study Was Run

The researchers set it up as a randomized, double-blind and crossover study.

The volunteers were allocated by chance, so the Oils group and the comparison group should start out alike.

Neither the volunteers nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Oils, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

Each person switched between Oils and the comparison at some point, usually with a gap in between.

For comparative purposes, a conventional commercial fluoride control toothpaste was also used in this triple cross-over double blind study.

What Was Measured

PubMed files the paper under topics including Analysis of Variance, Anti-Infective Agents, Local, Chlorophenols, Citrates, Dental Plaque, Dental Plaque Index and Oils.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and crossover study of Oils and Toothpastes in 24 volunteers.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

Results are reported in around 4 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 2001 (Journal of clinical periodontology), a journal based in United States.

More context: all human trials.