Evaluation of dental plaque control in patients wearing fixed orthodontic appliances: a clinical study

Multibracket orthodontic appliances increase dental plaque retention and make teethbrushing more difficult for patients. As a result, advice from the orthodontist on oral hygiene along with patient motivation regarding teethbrushing are particularly important. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of electric toothbrushes with that of manual brushing associated with mouth-rinses comprising chlorhexidine (0.12%) and 0% alcohol. To this end, 84 patients receiving current orthodontic treatment were randomly selected from patients treated at the Dento-Facial Orthopedics department in the Casablanca Dental Consultation and Treatment Center. Selected patients were divided into three groups: Group 1: manual teethbrushing; Group 2: electric teethbrushing; Group 3: manual brushing combined with mouth rinse. Oral hygiene was assessed using the Loe-Silness plaque and gingival indices. Measurements were made before and 4 weeks after the observation period. Results were subjected to statistical comparison in order to determine the group showing greatest improvement and to deduce the best means of controlling bacterial plaque. The electric toothbrush and the chlorhexidine mouth rinse appear to control dental plaque more effectively than manual teethbrushing alone. Following this study, patients receiving multibracket treatment were invited to combine manual brushing with short clinical mouth-rinsing sessions or to use an electric toothbrush.