CHAPEL HILL – Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Adams School of Dentistry have launched a clinical trial to test whether mouthwash can reduce the risk of coronavirus spread.
Laboratory experiments have shown that mouthwash can quickly kill coronaviruses, but there is no evidence that mouthwash can prevent the virus from infecting humans. The Adams School of Dentistry is investigating how well mouthwash works to reduce the amount of coronavirus in the mouth of those with COVID-19, and whether it can reduce the chance of the virus spreading to others.
Here’s how the trial will work:
- Randomized, double-blind prospective trial to test the efficacy and acceptability of therapeutic, antiseptic mouthwashes to deactivate severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in saliva of COVID-19 positive patients aged 18-65 years.
- All mouthwashes are commercially available and will be used according to the instructions on the label.
- Patients are randomized to a oral mucosa and will be asked to give a saliva sample immediately before and after one minute of mouthwash.
- Saliva samples will be collected from patients at intervals of 15 minutes thereafter to one hour (15, 30, 45 and 60 minutes).
- The samples are stored and used for the real-time detection of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) detection of viral SARS-CoV-2 RNA and viral infectivity assays.
- Patients will also do a brief survey on the taste and experience of using mouthwash.
- This study involves 480 subject participants and one 75-90 minute visit.
The focus of their research is to find a way to reduce the risk of coronavirus transmission in situations where masking and more than six feet apart, for example, is not possible during dental procedures.
“While we are excited about the top data, the real test is whether these mouthwashes have the saliva in patients’ mouths and whether a mouthwash risks the spread of SARS-CoV2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) through mouth drops,” Said Laura Jacox, principal investigator, a researcher in orthodontics and oral health sciences, director of the Orthodontic Research Program at the Adams School of Dentistry.
Specifically, researchers plan to measure how much virus is present in saliva before and after using mouthwash according to the directions on the label. Adults who have tested positive for COVID-19 over the past seven days are eligible to participate in the clinical trial.
Because the mouth constantly makes saliva, samples will be collected every 15 minutes and tested for up to an hour to determine how long any reduction in viral load and infectivity lasts.
Benefits can extend beyond healthcare
In the clinical trial, commercially available mouthwashes containing common antiseptic ingredients, such as ethylpyridinium chloride or ethanol, are tested.
“The study will enable us to determine which active ingredient in mouthwash has the most promise,” Jacox said. “Ideally, it is an ingredient that has already been approved by the FDA so that it can be used immediately.”
If proven effective, mouthwash can be a tool to control the spread of COVID-19 at one of the primary points of coronavirus. Preliminary results from a study led by Adams School of Dentistry and the National Institutes of Health showed that salivary glands, tongue and tonsils in particular are vulnerable to coronavirus infection.
COVID-19 usually spreads during close contact when an infected person coughs, sings, talks or sneezes.
“The use of a mouthwash is an easy-to-implement, low-risk, inexpensive intervention that has the potential for high reward,” said Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque, a professor at the Adams School of Dentistry and the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, told the UNC School. of medicine. “The potential benefit can go far beyond dental care to educational institutions and places of worship and help essential workers when there is unavoidable contact.”
The results of the study are expected later this year. Call 984-363-6243 or send an email to [email protected] for more information.