Sir,We have read with great interest the article published in the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery by Vergara-Buenaventura and Castro-Ruiz stating that although there is still no clinical evidence that they can prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, preoperative antimicrobial mouth rinses with chlorhexidine gluconate (CHX), cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), povidone-iodine (PVP-I), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) have been recommended to reduce the number of micro-organisms in aerosols and drops during oral procedures.Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCI) is also widely accepted as being a safe and effective antiseptic against bacteria, fungi, and viruses. The findings confirm the effectiveness of mouth rinse with dilute sodium hypochlorite against bacterial biofilms and the significant reductions in gingival inflammation.[2], [3]Meanwhile, as the effectiveness of sodium hypochlorite against viruses, including feline calicivirus, human influenza virus, measles virus, human herpesvirus, human adenovirus, and murine hepatitis virus, which have many structural and genetic similarities to SARS-CoV, has been suggested, it is likely that it should also effectively inactivate SARS-CoV-2.[4], [5] Mouthwashes of dilute sodium hypochlorite should therefore be fully recommended as an effective prevention of coronavirus before the treatment of oral diseases during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Conflict of interest
We have no conflicts of interest.
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