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A clinical study to compare the efficacy of 2 electric toothbrushes in plaque removal
C E Dörfer1, B Berbig, E R von Bethlenfalvy
1Department of Operative Dentistry and Periodontology, School of Dental Medicine, Ruprecht-Karls-University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 400, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany. christof_doerfer@med.uni-heidelberg.de
Objectives:
To compare the cleaning efficacy of a powered toothbrush with 3-dimensional brush head action (Braun Oral-B 3D Plaque Remover D15) and a high-speed "microtation" brush with an additional "microbrush-clip" (Rowenta Dentasonic MH921S).
Material And Methods:
82 healthy subjects took part in the study. After a familiarization period of 8 days, the subjects abstained from all oral hygiene procedures for 48 h. After plaque was scored, the subjects brushed their teeth under supervision with the two brushes according to a split-mouth design. Immediately after brushing, subjects completed a questionnaire and plaque was scored again.
Results:
The overall plaque scores were found to be significantly reduced from 3.05+/-0.60 to 1.96+/-0.63 by the D15 and from 3.02+/-0.58 to 2.24+/-0.64 by the Dentasonic (p<0.05). The proximal surface plaque scores were reduced from 3.20+/-0.63 to 2.17+/-0.69 by the D15 and from 3.17+/-0.60 to 2.44+/-0.69 by the Dentasonic. The relative plaque reduction was overall 36.6+/-12.2% for the D15 compared to 26.1+/-13.5% for the Dentasonic and at proximal surfaces, 33.1+/-12.3% and 23.2+/-13.0%, respectively. 75% of the subjects stated that they would prefer to keep the D15.
Conclusions:
Both brushes were able to remove a significant amount of plaque, but the D15 was significantly more effective compared to the Dentasonic. The additional "microbrush-clip" for the proximal embrasures failed to improve plaque removal from these tooth surfaces, compared to the D15 alone.