Antiviral mouthwashes: possible benefit for COVID-19 with evidence-based approach

BACKGROUND: The outbreak, and pandemic of COVID-19 causing widespread concerns in all health systems of countries. Virus-carrying aerosols can penetrate the healthy human body and lungs, resulting in rapid transmission. For the first time, in this evidence-based article, the effects of different types of mouthwashes to reduce the viral load were investigated. Also, another aim of this essay is a reduction in viral load in patients with COVID-19 and prevention developing ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill patients. METHODS: Related databases were comprehensively searched for relevant studies. The present study was performed according to the preferred cases for standard systematic reviews (PRISMA). RESULTS: Five original studies in which the subject matter was directly evaluated were included. Different types of mouthwashes and viruses were investigated in this study. CONCLUSIONS: The antiviral mouthwashes play a certainly important role in reducing the viral load of the salivary virus. In the present study, this importance could be proved in two different aspects, that is, the use of mouthwash before dental procedures to reduce the risk of transmission of the virus to the dental team and the use of this mouthwash in COVID-19 patients to help improve systemic problems associated with oral microbial flora.