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. 2013 Sep;7(Suppl 1):S071-S077.
doi: 10.4103/1305-7456.119078.

Antimicrobial efficacy of five essential oils against oral pathogens: An in vitro study

Nilima Thosar  1 , Silpi Basak  2 , Rakesh N Bahadure  3 , Monali Rajurkar  2
Affiliations

Antimicrobial efficacy of five essential oils against oral pathogens: An in vitro study

Nilima Thosar et al. Eur J Dent. 2013 Sep.

Abstract

Objectives: This study was aimed to find out the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of five essential oils against oral pathogens and to find out the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) and minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC) of five essential oils against oral pathogens.

Materials and methods: The antimicrobial activities by detecting MIC and MBC/MFC of five essential oils such as tea tree oil, lavender oil, thyme oil, peppermint oil and eugenol oil were evaluated against four common oral pathogens by broth dilution method. The strains used for the study were Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Enterococcus fecalis ATCC 29212, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922 and Candida albicans ATCC 90028.

Results: Out of five essential oils, eugenol oil, peppermint oil, tea tree oil exhibited significant inhibitory effect with mean MIC of 0.62 ± 0.45, 9.00 ± 15.34, 17.12 ± 31.25 subsequently. Mean MBC/MFC for tea tree oil was 17.12 ± 31.25, for lavender oil 151.00 ± 241.82, for thyme oil 22.00 ± 12.00, for peppermint oil 9.75 ± 14.88 and for eugenol oil 0.62 ± 0.45. E. fecalis exhibited low degree of sensitivity compared with all essential oils.

Conclusion: Peppermint, tea tree and thyme oil can act as an effective intracanal antiseptic solution against oral pathogens.

Keywords: Antimicrobial activity; essential oils; oral pathogens.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Minimum inhibitory concentration of thyme oil for Staphylococcus aureus
Figure 2
Figure 2
Minimum bactericidal concentration for Enterococcus fecalis
Figure 3
Figure 3
Minimum bactericidal concentration for Escherichia coli
Figure 4
Figure 4
Minimum bactericidal concentration for Stapholococcus aureus
Figure 5
Figure 5
Minimum fungicidal concentration for Candida albicans
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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