I

It s a liquid which is held in the mouth passively or swilled around the mouth by contraction of the perioral muscles and/or movement of the head, and may be gargled, where the head is tilted back and the liquid bubbled at the back of the mouth.

Usually mouthwashes are antiseptic solutions intended to reduce the microbial load in the oral cavity, although other mouthwashes might be given for other reasons such as for their analgesic, anti-inflammatory or anti-fungal action.

0.25%

Hypertonic saline is easily accessible , cheap and good anti inflammatory role with slight disadvantage in hypertensive patients and almost similar results to chlorhexidine mouth washes

This is a very good question, while chlorhexindine is the gold standard for periodontitis, there are very few articles comparing the ideal mouthwash for gingivitis. If brushing is adequate , is there still a need for one?

Thanks dear colleagues for your enlightening comments !

One of greatest benefits of salt water mouth wash is it is an ideal antibacterial, alcohol free as compared to many commercially available mouth wash and also helps to dislodge food particles in narrow spaces between teeth and other natural crevices where your brush or floss may not reach.

4% hypertonic saline have shown to have good results ( J Korean Acad Nurs. 2014 Feb;44(1):13-20. doi: 10.4040/jkan.2014.44.1.13. )

Due to the salt content and the risk of its absorption from oral cavity, it not recommended to use salt water mouthwash everyday.

Chlorhexidine mouthwash on other hand have additional chemical effect also due to its ability to retain in mouth and remain active for around 12 hrs.

Following