The use of a concentrated oral rinse culture technique to sample oral candida and lactobacilli in children, and the relationship between candida and lactobacilli levels and dental caries experience: a pilot study.

The purpose of this study was to test the suitability of a concentrated rinse culture technique, previously applied to adults, as a method for sampling the oral cavity of children on a community basis. The technique was used to assess the levels of oral candida and lactobacilli in the mouths of a group of 32 14- to 15-year-old children and to relate this to their past caries experience. Caries experience was assessed by means of a DMFS count. Each subject rinsed with 10 ml of buffered saline for 1 minute for microbial sampling. The oral rinse was concentrated by centrifugation and cultured on to selective media for candida and lactobacilli. The rinse technique proved simple and effective as a means of sampling the oral flora in children. The level of candida was more easily assessed and appeared to be a more useful indicator of microbial risk factors in caries than the lactobacilli count.