Evaluation of the pH, titratable acidity and viscosity of various brands of syrups sampled from various pharmacy stores in Benin.
Main Article Content
Abstract
Background: For so long now, medicated syrups have been used in paediatric practice for the treatment of disease conditions, as palliatives and even as food supplements / haematinics. Pharmaceutical firms sweeten liquid preparations with sucrose to aid compliance, and this in turn increases their viscosity. Some of the constituents of these syrups are acidic and are capable causing erosion of the dentiture.
Objectives: This in vitro study aims to evaluate the endogenous pH, titratable acidity and viscosity of different syrups sampled from different pharmacy stores in Benin City.
Methods: Sixteen (16) commonly used syrups were evaluated. The pH of each syrup was determined using a digital pH meter. The titratable acidity was assessed by titrating 0.1 N sodium hydroxide solution against 30 ml of each syrup until a pH of 8.2 was reached. The viscosity of the syrups was determined using a suspended level viscometer.
Results: The pH of the syrup brands ranged from 3.25 to 6.18. All the syrups had an acidic pH and 82% of the samples showed pH below the critical value of 5.5 which is capable of causing enamel dissolution. The titratable acidity of the syrups ranged from 0.93-7.50 g/100 ml while the kinematic viscosity of the syrups ranged from 6.51- 2 -1 75.96 mm S .
Conclusion: The outcome of this study confirms that all syrups investigated had high values of pH, titratable acidity and viscosity.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
Neves BG, Pierro VC, Maia LC (2008). Paediatricians' perception of the use of sweetened medications related to oral health. Journal of Clinical Paediatric Dentistry 32(2):1337.
Pierro VC, Abdelnur JP, Maia LC, Trugo LC (2005). Free sugar concentration and pH of paediatric medicines in Brazil. Community of Dental Health 22(3): 180-183.
Marathaki E, Pollard MA, Curzon EJ (1995). The effect of sucrose in medicines on plaque pH.International Journal of Paediatric Dentistry
:231-235.
Mentes A (2001). Changes in dental plaque after using sugar free paediatric medicine. Journal of Clinical Paediatric Dentistry 25:307-312.
Sumtha S, Prashanth GM, Shanmukhappa, Chandu GN, Shubba-Redd VV (2009). An analysis of concentration of sucrose; endogenous pH on
consumption of commonly used liquid paediatric medicines. Journal of Indian Paediatric Dentistry 1(27) 44-48.
Vivenne L, Seow WK (2001). Dental erosion in children; A literature review. Paediatric Dentistry 23:37-43.
Girish BKL, Kavita R, Amitha MH (2008). Paediatric liquid medicaments, Do they erode the teeth surface? An in-vitro study: part 1. Journal of
Clinical Paediatric Dentistry, 332(3):189-194.
Viviane Santos da Silva P, Beatriz RF, Michelle V (2010). Erosive effect of an anti-histamine liquid formulation on bovine teeth; influence of
exposure time. Brazilian Journal of Oral Science 9(1):20-24.
Larsen MJ, Nyvad B (1999). Enamel erosion by some soft drinks and orange juices relative to their pH; buffering effect and content of calcium phosphate. Caries Res; 33 81-87.
Shaw L, Smith A (1994). Erosion in children, an increasing clinical problem? Dental Update 21:103-106.
Zero DT (1996). Etiology of dental erosion; extrinsic factors. European Journal of Clinical Education 83(10):1465.
Owens BM (2007). The potential effects of pH and buffering capacity on dental erosion. Gen. Dentistry, 55:527-531.
Barnes HA, Hutton JF, Walter K (1989). An Introduction to Rheology. Amstertan. Elsevier p.12.
Bamise CT, Esan TA , Oziegbe EO, Alo IF pH and Titratable Acidity of different Cough Syrups in Nigeria. Tanz Dent J 2014, 18(2): 49 – 55.
Hughes JA, Newcombe RG, Andy M (2000). Relative susceptibility of deciduous and permanent dental hard tissues to erosion by a
low pH fruit drink in-vitro. Journal of Dentistry, 28:265-270.
Marquezan M, Pozzobon RT, Oliviera MDM (2007). Medicines used by paediatric dentistry, patients and its cariogenic potentials, 13:334-339
Lussi A, Schlueter N, Rakhmatullina E, Ganss C (2011). Dental Erosion – An Overview with Emphasis on Chemical and Histopathological
Aspects. Caries Res 2011;45 (suppl 1):2–12
Alessandro LC, Rayanne I.M. De Sousa, Marayaza AC, Fernando FV, Christiane LC, Alidianne FC (2012). In vitro analysis of the cariogenic and erosive potential of paediatric antitussives liquid oral medications. Tanzania Journal of Health Research 14(2):1-8.
Farias IAP, Sampaio FC, Freitas CHS (2011). Long term paediatric sugared medicines; knowledge and attitude of medical practitioners at a university hospital, RGO59(4): 599-602
Jaeggi T, Lussi A (1998). Toothbrush Abrasion of Erosively Altered Enamel after Intraoral Exposure to Saliva: An in situ Study. Caries Res;33:455–461