Resistance to Mercury and Antimicrobial Agents in Streptococcus mutans Isolates from Human Subjects in Relation to Exposure to Dental Amalgam Fillings

Resistance to cefuroxime, penicillin, tetracycline, and mercury is reported for 839 Streptococcus mutans isolates from 209 human study subjects. The MICs of these drugs did not differ for isolates from one dental amalgam group and two nonamalgam subsets: a group with no known exposure to amalgam and a group whose members had their amalgam fillings removed.