'Mouthwash can kill COVID-19 virus in 30 seconds' Says Researchers

LONDON: Researchers have once again claimed that widely-available mouthwashes have killed Coronavirus, responsible for the COVID-19 disease, within 30 seconds of exposure in laboratory conditions.

The study this time from Cardiff University in the UK, which has not yet been peer-reviewed or published in a medical journal, found that some mouthwashes could help to kill the Coronavirus in saliva.

According to the BBC, while the research suggests use of mouthwash may help kill the virus in saliva, there is not evidence it could be used as a treatment for coronavirus, as it will not reach the the respiratory tract or the lungs. "The ability of mouthwashes to inactivate SARS-CoV-2 in vitro was tested using a protocol capable of detecting reduction in infectivity," said the study authors,

The mouthwashes were tested in the laboratory under conditions that are designed to mimic the oral/nasal cavity in a test tube.

The researchers revealed that mouthwashes containing at least 0.07 per cent cetypyridinium chloride showed "promising signs" of virus-killing potential. "This study adds to the emerging literature that several commonly-available mouthwashes designed to fight gum disease can also inactivate the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus (and other related coronaviruses)," study lead author Richard Stanton was quoted as saying to the BBC.

According to the research team, clinical trial will look at whether it helps to reduce levels of the virus in the saliva of COVID-19 patients at the hospital in Cardiff, with results expected early next year. Researcher David Thomas said the initial results were encouraging, but the clinical trial would not produce evidence of how to prevent transmission between patients.

"Whilst these mouthwashes very effectively eradicate the virus in the laboratory, we need to see if they work in patients and this is the point of our ongoing clinical study," he said. (IANS)

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