ArticleBMC oral health2022
Robot and mechanical testing of a specialist manual toothbrush for cleaning efficacy and improved force control.
Article in BMC oral health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- A novel toothbrush with a thin-head, slender-neck and super-tapered bristles enhancing accessibility in hard-to-reach areas: a crossover randomized trial.BMC oral health · 2024Trial
- Article
- Physicochemical Properties of Curen® Filaments Versus Nylon Filaments in Toothbrush Bristles: An In Vitro Study.Cureus · 2024Article
- Impact of manual toothbrush design on plaque removal efficacy.BMC oral health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundToothbrushes require flexibility to access all dental surfaces and remove plaque effectively, but they should also aim to prevent or limit overbrushing and consequent damage to teeth and gums. In two studies, the physical properties and cleaning performance of specialist test toothbrushes with flexible necks were compared to a reference rigid-necked toothbrush.
methodsIn Study 1, a universal testing machine (Instron E 10,000) with a specially designed setup was used to test the deflection behaviour of toothbrush head and neck. Untufted toothbrushes were fixed in a custom holder and force was applied to the head while the deflection was measured. In Study 2, one control and five test toothbrushes were assessed using a robot system to simulate the cleaning of artificial plaque from defined surfaces of artificial replicated human teeth in a model oral cavity (typodonts).
resultsStudy 1 showed that the flexible-neck toothbrush deflected 2 to 2.5 times more than the rigid-neck reference toothbrush when same force was applied to the toothbrush head. Study 2 revealed that all five test toothbrushes showed statistically superior simulated plaque removal to the reference toothbrush. This superiority was observed for all test toothbrushes employing horizontal and rotating brushing action (all p = 0.001) but only three of the five toothbrushes when vertical brushing was employed (all p = 0.001). Cleaning efficacy of the test toothbrushes was demonstrated both interdentally and at the gumline locations. The Complete Protection toothbrush showed the most effective cleaning performance followed by the Repair and Protect and Rapid Relief toothbrushes.
conclusionThe addition of a flexible-neck component to the toothbrush designs helped to reduce stiffness and may allow more effective cleaning compared to rigid designs with controlled force distribution on the teeth and gums. This may help to provide plaque control at all potential risk areas in an in vitro robot model and could support good oral hygiene in-use.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.