Rinsing for one minute with 0,07% CPC contributes to the degradation of the virus that causes COVID-19

The clinical trial carried out in Aragon has been published in the Journal of Clinical Periodontology

The study proposes that the use of mouthwashes with CPC could be added to other preventive strategies to prevent the spread of SARS-CoV-2

A clinical trial led by a multidisciplinary group made up of hygienists, nurses, pharmacists, microbiologists and primary care doctors from the Aragonese Health Service, the Aragón Health Research Institute and the DENTAID Research Center has just been published in the scientific journal Journal of Clinical Periodontology .

The study, titled “Randomized clinical trial to assess the impact of oral intervention with Cetylpyridinium Chloride to reduce the viral load of SARS-CoV-2”, aims to determine the effectiveness of an oral hygiene mouthwash with CPC. 0,07% in reducing the infectious viral load of SARS-CoV-2 in COVID-19 patients. A single rinse with the CPC-carrying mouthwash caused a statistically significant increase in degraded virus in the patients' mouths. “This result suggests that the use of this mouthwash contributes to the reduction of the SARS-CoV-2 viral load in saliva,” indicates Rosa Tarragó Gil, oral hygienist and principal investigator of the study.

The oral cavity is one of the main routes of entry for SARS-CoV-2 and represents a key site for replication and increase in viral load before colonization of the lower airways. Aerosols released from the mouth help the virus spread.

Study methodology

In this work, the effectiveness of 0,07% CPC mouthwashes in reducing the viral load in the saliva of 80 patients with COVID-19 has been evaluated. The researchers took a saliva sample from the patients at the health center after having performed the test that confirmed their positivity. Patients were then randomly assigned to a group that rinsed with CPC mouthwash or a group that rinsed with a placebo for 1 minute. 

After 2 hours, another saliva sample was collected at home. The total load of SARS-CoV-2 in saliva was determined by RT-qPCR at the Lozano Blesa University Clinical Hospital and with an ELISA test, at the IrsiCaixa research center, the nucleocapsid (N) protein of SARS-CoV was quantified. -2. At 2 h after a single rinse, the concentration of N protein in saliva was significantly higher in the group of patients who received the CPC compared to the group of patients who received the placebo mouthwash, indicating an increase in degraded virus.

The study was carried out in the Seminario, Sagasta and San José Norte health centers, with the collaboration of Sectors II and III of Zaragoza. This finding demonstrates the research capacity of Primary Care and serves to promote lines of research in oral health, aligned with the 2022 strategy of the World Health Organization (WHO). The group also currently develops an international line of work in health promotion through the reduction of sugar consumption.

This study opens a field for future research in the evaluation of prevention in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2.

Full study: https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpe.13746