Exploring the Link Between Salivary S. mutans and Dental Decay

Abstract

Dental caries is not only a localized problem; it is a complicated, infectious, and contagious process that wears away the hard substance of the tooth. S. mutans is a typical inhabitant of the mouth who is at the center of this process and is known to thrive in the mouth and produce the same acids which cause the decay. Although in the past, the former was criticized as being the main cause of cavities, recent studies have revealed a more complex association between S. mutans and real caries occurrence. To determine that correlation, the present study was aimed at studying the groups of 53 children (age 3-5) in Diego Torres School in Turmeque, Boyac. The samples of unstimulated saliva were collected, and carefully processed and cultured on selective Mitis Salivarius Bacitracin agar. Upon anaerobic incubation period we determined the isolated S. mutans strains by biochemical testing. Results:We calculated the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of chemoreceptors of seven antibiotics 0.003-32mL including penicillin and amoxicillin using the agar dilution technique, which showed a high caries experience of 66% in the group. Intriguingly, although S. mutans was found in 62% of the children, its presence was not predictive of the decay perfectly: only 64% of the children with the bacteria had cavities. What was more surprising is that 70 percent of children who were negative to S. mutans yet experienced caries and no statistically significant difference in the number of bacteria in the healthy and affected group was found to be significant (p=0.21). In conclusion, it is possible to note that S. mutans is still a salient contributor, but in any population, its interaction with dental caries is not necessarily a direct cause-and-effect phenomenon. Nevertheless, these strains are very sensitive to routine antibiotics, and this provides an encouraging future of the treatment of systemic infection that can be caused by oral pathogens.