PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Researchers have found that mouthwashes are effective in preventing coronavirus from replicating and could eventually be helpful in stopping transmission.
The researchers at Rutgers University School of Dental Medicine used antiseptic mouthwashes to see if they would be effective in preventing the spread of COVID-19. Four of them worked, but professor Dr. Daniel Fine, chair of the department of oral biology, said only two had little impact on the mouth.
Fine stresses this work was done in a lab, but it is promising if research can now determine how much of the mouthwash is needed and how often it must be used.
"If we then could reduce the viral load that's in the oral cavity that's dispensed by talking, singing, sneezing, and that could have an effect on the transmissibility of the virus," he said.
He says if the human trials prove that mouthwash will work, this could be another tool in the mitigation arsenal, along with masks and social distancing.
"So if a dental visit only lasts an hour, and let's say for example that the mouth rinse is only effective for a half-hour, that would suggest that the patient should rinse and gargle twice during the visit to reduce the viral load and protect the dentist and dental professionals from back spray," he said.
He says prescription mouthwash Chlorhexidine was effective and safe, and so was Listerine, which is found in many medicine cabinets. The study was published in the journal Pathogens.
