The effects of different levels of brush end rounding on gingival abrasion: a double‐blind randomized clinical trial

Objective The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of different levels of filament end rounding on gingival abrasions ( GA s). Methods The study was a crossover, split‐mouth, contra‐lateral, double‐blinded, randomized design using professional brushing. Three manual toothbrushes, with 0%, 40–50% and >90% end‐rounded filaments, were investigated. Participants refrained from all oral hygiene procedures for 48 h prior to each of the three visits. Prior to brushing, oral soft tissue ( OST ) and GA s were assessed. Based on the randomization, during every visit contra‐lateral quadrants were brushed with one of the three test brushes. After brushing, GA s were re‐assessed. The means of the GA s prebrushing and post‐brushing and differences per brush were calculated. Subanalyses were performed based on the size of the abrasion and its location. Results A total of 46 generally healthy participants without periodontitis completed the study and provided a full data set. All brushes had statistically significant increases of abrasions following their use ( P < 0.001). Non‐end‐rounded brushes provided significantly more GA s than did the 40–50% and the >90% brushes ( P ≥ 0.001). A subanalysis showed that significantly more small‐sized ( P ≥ 0.002) abrasions located at the gingival margin ( P < 0.001) occurred when a non‐end‐rounded brush was used. No significant differences were found between the 40–50% and >90% end‐rounded brushes in any of the analyses. OST deviations were not observed. Conclusions Based on the results of this experiment involving professional brushing, it can be concluded that 40–50% or greater end‐rounded filaments can provide a significant reduction in gingival abrasions compared to non‐end‐rounded filaments.