Comparative Contact Angle Analysis of 1% Chlorhexidine and 2% Metronidazole Mouthgel - An In Vitro Study

Abstract

Introduction: Chlorhexidine is considered to be gold standard drug in treating various oral infections. Metronidazole is effective for treating various anaerobic infections, including dental abscess and periodontal abscess. In current technical applications and material sciences, contact angle is a thermodynamic characteristic that describes the wettability of solid surfaces. The aim of this study is to compare the contact angle of chlorhexidine and metronidazole mouth gel.
 Materials and Methods: Total 10 samples of gel was used, involving 5 samples of 1% chlorhexidine gel and 5 samples of 2 % metronidazole gel. The contact angles were measured with the Ossila Goniometer after each sample was dispensed from a microsyringe on the facial surface of the microtomed tooth. The obtained values from the samples were determined, and the data was statistically analysed using SPSS software version 20.0. The paired t test was used to analyse the data.
 Results: From the data collected it was found that the average contact angle of the mouth gels that is chlorhexidine and metronidazole gel were 51.58 & 67.04 respectively. T test showed p value of 0.157, (p value < 0.05). Hence, it is statistically not significant. Chlorhexidine gel had a lower average mean of contact angle than metronidazole gel, which means chlorhexidine gel had got better wettability when compared to metronidazole gel.
 Conclusion: Thus, it can be concluded that chlorhexidine gel has a better tendency to wet the tooth or oral cavity surfaces when compared to metronidazole gel, thereby it can have better action in treating various oral conditions.