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Toothbrush efficacy for plaque removal
Author(s) -
Nightingale KJ,
Chinta SK,
Agarwal P,
Nemelivsky M,
Frisina AC,
Cao Z,
Norman RG,
Fisch GS,
Corby P
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
international journal of dental hygiene
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.674
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1601-5037
pISSN - 1601-5029
DOI - 10.1111/idh.12081
Subject(s) - medicine , gingival inflammation , dentistry , toothbrush , bleeding on probing , randomized controlled trial , significant difference , gingivitis , brush , surgery , periodontal disease , electrical engineering , engineering
Objectives To determine the effectiveness of a novel sonic toothbrush in reducing plaque and in maintenance of gingival health when compared to a standard manual brush. Methods This study was a block‐randomized, examiner‐blind, two‐treatment, parallel group, single centre clinical investigation. A total of 84 subjects were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive either the Panasonic EW‐DL90 or an American Dental Association‐endorsed manual toothbrush. Subjects were instructed to follow a twice‐daily brushing regimen without flossing. Plaque levels and gingival health were assessed at baseline and after 1 and 3 weeks of treatment using the Turesky Modification of the Quigley‐Hein Plaque Index and the Papillary Bleeding Score. Results Subjects assigned to the EW‐DL90 group had significantly lower plaque levels after 1 and 3 weeks of treatment than those in the manual group ( P = 0.003 and 0.0035, respectively). Both groups showed a reduction in plaque levels at Week 3 relative to baseline. The EW‐DL90 group had significantly lower gingival inflammation scores after 1 week of treatment ( P = 0.0293), but there was no difference between groups after 3 weeks of treatment. Conclusion The EW‐DL90 toothbrush safely and effectively removes more plaque than a standard manual toothbrush. Improvement in gingival inflammation was observed after 1 week of treatment. There was no difference in Papillary Bleeding Score between the two groups after 3 weeks of treatment. Clinical significance The newly developed sonic brush (Panasonic EW‐DL90) tested in this study was found to be more effective than a manual toothbrush at plaque removal. The papillary bleeding scores were significantly lower in the sonic brush group after 1 week of product use. After 3 weeks of product use, both treatment groups had similar papillary bleeding scores almost returning to baseline values.