Dental plaque scores of children brushing with a gel or paste-dentifrice

This one-month, unsupervised toothbrushing study investigated the amount and distribution of dental plaque on the teeth of children using either a translucent gel-dentifrice or a conventional paste-dentifrice. No significant differences in dental-plaque-scores were observed between the dentifrice groups from baseline to the end of the one-month study. However, a significant and equivalent increase in the amount of plaque was observed for both dentifrice groups over the study period, indicating a participation effect. The study further demonstrated that uninstructed children in this age-category have a significantly greater amount of plaque on the lingual surfaces than on the buccal and labial surfaces, following toothbrushing; and, in most cases, their maxillary teeth have less plaque than those of the mandible. No differences in plaque-scores between anterior and posterior teeth were observed.