Chlorhexidine varnish in the treatment of chronic periodontitis

Local drug delivery has gained wide acceptance as an adjunct to mechanical debridement for the treatment of chronic periodontitis. A variety of delivery vehicles have been utilized for intrapocket administration of antimicrobial agents with variable success. Varnishes, which accomplish a reservoir of drug on the tooth surface are one of the recently developed vehicles used to deliver antimicrobial agent such as chlorhexidine, being utilized for the treatment of periodontitis. They allow application of a sufficient dose of antimicrobial agent over a longer period of time. So, varnishes seem to be an appealing vehicle for delivery of chlorhexidine (a gold standard anti-plaque agent) in periodontal milieu. From the results of present investigation, it can be concluded, within limitations of the study, that multiple applications of 1% chlorhexidine varnish have an added benefit over single application in treatment of chronic periodontitis.