Abstract
Background and Objectives: Dental professionals often recommend changing toothbrushes every three months due to their wear and decreased plaque removal efficacy. This study aimed to assess the correlation of duration of use of a toothbrush and its wear and then the relationship of wear of toothbrush and Plaque Index (PI) of users and tapering of toothbrush filaments after three months of use was evaluated as well. Materials and Methods: In this study, 60 female students were enrolled according to the eligibility criteria and received a new set of toothbrush and toothpaste. They were requested to brush their teeth using the Bass technique twice a day for 2 minutes and the Ramfjord PI was measured at baseline and after 3 months. The wear of 47 toothbrushes after three months of use was evaluated using the Rawls index. Of collected 47 toothbrushes, 30 were randomly chosen and inspected under an electron microscope to determine the degree of tapering of bristles. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20 via Spearman’s correlation coefficient, paired t-test and Pearson’s correlation coefficient (alpha=0.05). Results: After 3 months, the mean PI score significantly decreased (paired t-test, P=0.034). The PI at 3 months after use had no significant correlation with the toothbrush wear score (Spearman’s correlation coefficient, P=0.61) but the toothbrush wear score had a significant correlation with tapering of bristles (Spearman’s correlation coefficient, P=0.04). No significant association existed between PI at 3 months after use and tapering of bristles (Pearson’s correlation coefficient, P=0.69). Conclusion: The duration of use and wear of toothbrush alone do not affect the quality of plaque removal. Practicing Oral hygiene can affect the quality of plaque removal.
Highlights
Supragingival plaque removal is among the most important strategies to promote oral and dental health and decrease the prevalence of caries and periodontal disease [1, 2]
The Plaque Index (PI) at 3 months after use had no significant correlation with the toothbrush wear score (Spearman’s correlation coefficient, P=0.61) but the toothbrush wear score had a significant correlation with tapering of bristles (Spearman’s correlation coefficient, P=0.04)
No significant association existed between PI at 3 months after use and tapering of bristles (Pearson’s correlation coefficient, P=0.69)
Summary
Supragingival plaque removal is among the most important strategies to promote oral and dental health and decrease the prevalence of caries (especially in combination with the use of fluoridated toothpastes) and periodontal disease [1, 2]. It is recommended to replace toothbrushes before the appearance of the first signs of wear of filaments, which often occurs 2-3 months after using the toothbrush. Dental professionals and dental product manufacturers recommend changing the toothbrushes every 3 months [4, 7]. Some studies have recommended changing the toothbrush after 2, 5 or 6 months [11]. Dental professionals often recommend changing toothbrushes every three months due to their wear and decreased plaque removal efficacy. This study aimed to assess the correlation of duration of use of a toothbrush and its wear and the relationship of wear of toothbrush and Plaque Index (PI) of users and tapering of toothbrush filaments after three months of use was evaluated as well
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