The comparative evaluation of the effects of tongue cleaning on salivary levels of mutans streptococci in children

Objectives: The study compared and evaluated the effects of tongue scraping and tongue brushing on salivary mutans streptococci levels in children. Methods: The investigation was a single-blind, stratified comparison of three parallel groups of children who performed either tongue scraping or tongue brushing along with tooth brushing or only tooth brushing twice daily under professional supervision for a 21-day period. A total of three saliva samples were taken from each individual, at baseline, on day 10 and on day 21, and colony counts of mutans streptococci were determined. All data were subjected to statistical analysis using Wilcoxon's signed-ranks sum test and Mann-Whitney U-test. Results and conclusions: The results of the present study show that tongue scraping and tongue brushing demonstrated statistically significant reductions in salivary mutans streptococci counts after 10 days and also after 21 days. It was also noted that tongue scraping and tongue brushing were equally effective in reducing colony counts.