Dental Plaque Biofilm

Dental plaque biofilm

Dental plaque is the primary etiologic agents in many common oral disease like dental caries, gingivitis, periodontitis, peri-implantitis (similar to periodontitis, but with dental implants) and even present in healthy teeth. Dental plaque is defined as a diverse community of microorganisms in the form of a biofilm that exists on both the tooth surface and under the gums. In dental plaque biofilm the microorganisms attach tightly to one another and also to the solid tooth surface by means of an extracellular polymeric matrix formed by both the host and microbes. Due to the recent technological advances dental plaque is now considered as a biofilm, which has helped in better understanding of common oral diseases and in its prevention and control in future.