NCT05721781

Brief Summary

This clinical trial is studying if bacteria found in a participant's bloodstream after brushing their teeth can be prevented with a dental cleaning and more education on how to best brush and care for their teeth. One group of participants will have a dental cleaning and oral health instructions and the other group of participants will not. Researchers will compare the blood test results from the two groups to see if the education made a difference in preventing bacteria and how long it stays in the bloodstream.

Trial Health

77
On Track

Trial Health Score

Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach

Enrollment
320

participants targeted

Target at P75+ for not_applicable

Timeline
16mo left

Started Aug 2023

Longer than P75 for not_applicable

Geographic Reach
1 country

6 active sites

Status
recruiting

Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.

Trial Relationships

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Study Timeline

Key milestones and dates

Study Progress67%
Aug 2023Sep 2027

First Submitted

Initial submission to the registry

January 31, 2023

Completed
10 days until next milestone

First Posted

Study publicly available on registry

February 10, 2023

Completed
7 months until next milestone

Study Start

First participant enrolled

August 31, 2023

Completed
4 years until next milestone

Primary Completion

Last participant's last visit for primary outcome

September 1, 2027

Expected
Same day until next milestone

Study Completion

Last participant's last visit for all outcomes

September 1, 2027

Last Updated

August 22, 2025

Status Verified

August 1, 2025

Enrollment Period

4 years

First QC Date

January 31, 2023

Last Update Submit

August 21, 2025

Conditions

Keywords

Oral HygieneOral BacteriaGingival inflammation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

  • Incidence of bacteremia

    Blood samples are assessed for positivity of Infective Endocarditis (IE) causing oral species. A participant is defined as having bacteremia at a visit if that participant has at least one blood draw positive for bacteremia of IE-causing species during or after tooth brushing, provided that those IE-causing species were not present at the pre-brushing blood draw.

    Baseline

  • Incidence of bacteremia

    Blood samples are assessed for positivity of Infective Endocarditis (IE) causing oral species. A participant is defined as having bacteremia at a visit if that participant has at least one blood draw positive for bacteremia of IE-causing species during or after tooth brushing, provided that those IE-causing species were not present at the pre-brushing blood draw.

    Week 15

Secondary Outcomes (5)

  • Change in Incidence of bacteremia

    Baseline to Week 3

  • Change in duration of bacteremia score

    Baseline, Week 3, and Week 15

  • Change in calculus index scores

    Baseline, Week 3, and Week 15

  • Change in visible plaque scores

    Baseline, Week 3, and Week 15

  • Change in gingival index scores

    Baseline, Week 3, and Week 15

Study Arms (2)

Participants receiving a dental cleaning and oral hygiene instruction

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants randomized to this arm will receive a standard dental cleaning and education on proper toothbrushing and flossing technique and asked to follow these toothbrushing and flossing techniques for the duration of the study period. They will receive periodic phone call reminders to maintain these practices during the study period.

Behavioral: Oral Hygiene instructionProcedure: Dental Cleaning

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Participants randomized to this arm will be instructed to continue with their usual oral hygiene practices for the duration of the study period.

Interventions

Participants will be instructed on the Modified Bass technique for toothbrushing: brushing with a soft bristled toothbrush held at a 45 degree angle to the gums and brushed in a circular motion. Participants will also be instructed to floss at least once per day using floss or another inter-dental device (e.g., floss pick).

Participants receiving a dental cleaning and oral hygiene instruction

Participants will receive a dental cleaning according to the current standard of care for routine dental cleanings.

Participants receiving a dental cleaning and oral hygiene instruction

Eligibility Criteria

Age18 Years+
Sexall
Healthy VolunteersYes
Age GroupsAdult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

  • Age 18 years or older.
  • Greater than 6 months since last dental hygiene prophylaxis (cleaning).
  • or more accessible teeth (including implants, with a minimum of 8 natural teeth).
  • Willing and able to provide informed consent.
  • Willing to comply with all study procedures and be available for the duration of the study.
  • Willing to forgo routine professional dental cleanings while enrolled in the trial.

You may not qualify if:

  • At high risk for IE, as defined by the 2007/2021 AHA Guidelines:
  • Prosthetic cardiac valve or prosthetic material used for cardiac valve repair.
  • Previous episode of IE.
  • Cardiac transplantation recipient with cardiac valvulopathy.
  • Specific congenital heart disease conditions.
  • Pregnant, by self-report, or planning to become pregnant during the study period.
  • Affected by a condition that, in the opinion of the investigator, may preclude them from study completion or put them at increased risk such as :
  • Hemodialysis dependent.
  • Have a long-term intravascular catheter (e.g., for chemotherapy or parenteral nutrition).
  • Active injection drug use (IDU).
  • Clotting disorder such as, hemophilia.
  • Have a solid organ transplant or hematopoietic stem cell transplant, or ongoing treatment for hematologic cancer.
  • Currently incarcerated.
  • Systemic antibiotic use within the past 2 weeks.
  • Undergoing orthodontic treatment with fixed appliances (brackets and wires) or plans to do so during the study period.
  • +3 more criteria

Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.

Sponsors & Collaborators

Study Sites (6)

Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and Tufts University Health Sciences Campus

Boston, Massachusetts, 02111, United States

WITHDRAWN

University of Michigan School of Dentistry and Michigan Medicine

Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48109, United States

RECRUITING

Rutgers School of Dental Medicine

Newark, New Jersey, 07103, United States

COMPLETED

New York University

New York, New York, 10010, United States

NOT YET RECRUITING

University of Rochester Medical Center

Rochester, New York, 14620, United States

ACTIVE NOT RECRUITING

Atrium Health's Carolinas Medical Center

Charlotte, North Carolina, 28203, United States

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

BacteremiaEndocarditisGingivitis

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Bacterial InfectionsBacterial Infections and MycosesInfectionsSepsisSystemic Inflammatory Response SyndromeInflammationPathologic ProcessesPathological Conditions, Signs and SymptomsHeart DiseasesCardiovascular DiseasesGingival DiseasesPeriodontal DiseasesMouth DiseasesStomatognathic Diseases

Study Officials

  • Peter Lockhart, DDS

    Wake Forest University Health Sciences

    PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Study Design

Study Type
interventional
Phase
not applicable
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Masking
DOUBLE
Who Masked
INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
Purpose
PREVENTION
Intervention Model
PARALLEL
Sponsor Type
OTHER
Responsible Party
SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

First Submitted

January 31, 2023

First Posted

February 10, 2023

Study Start

August 31, 2023

Primary Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2027

Last Updated

August 22, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-08

Data Sharing

IPD Sharing
Will share

A public use dataset will be available upon study completion.

Locations