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SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Oral. Health
Sec. Preventive Dentistry
Volume 6 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/froh.2025.1535233

Unveiling the Dual Nature of Lactobacillus: From Cariogenic Threat to Probiotic Protector--A critical review with bibliometric analysis

Provisionally accepted
Di Fu Di Fu Lin Yao Lin Yao Ge Zhou Ge Zhou Ga Liao Ga Liao Yunwo Zhu Yunwo Zhu Ling Zou Ling Zou *
  • Sichuan University, Chengdu, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Dental caries is a prevalent oral disease with a multifactorial etiology. Lactobacillus has been implicated in caries progression on account of its acidogenic properties; On the other hand, they constitute one of the potential probiotic strategies for preventing dental caries. This complex relationship renders the relationship between Lactobacillus and dental caries remains ambiguous.The Web of Science core collections (WoSCC) were searched to acquire articles relevant to Lactobacillus and dental caries. After retrieval and manual screening, publications were analyzed by VOSviewer.Results: Sweden, the US, and China, which have been the center of international cooperation, have produced the most publications in the research area. Caries Research is the main counterpart journal in the field. "Dental caries", "Streptococcus mutans", "Lactobacilli", "Probiotics", and "Children" have been commonly used as keywords.Discussion: Based on bibliometric analysis, this study reviews the relationship between lactobacilli and dental caries, emphasizing their dual roles. The detection rate of lactobacilli is closely associated with the incidence and severity of dental caries. However, under specific environmental conditions, these bacteria also exhibit potential probiotic properties that may aid in the prevention of dental caries. Additionally, Lactobacillus is strongly associated with early childhood caries, a specific type of caries.

    Keywords: lactobacilli, Dental Caries, Cariogenicity, Probiotics, Caries prevention, early childhood caries, Bibliometrics

    Received: 27 Nov 2024; Accepted: 13 Jan 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Fu, Yao, Zhou, Liao, Zhu and Zou. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Ling Zou, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.