Trial reportBMC oral health2024
The effectiveness of water jet flossing and interdental flossing for oral hygiene in orthodontic patients with fixed appliances: a randomized clinical trial.
Trial report in BMC oral health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
The trial behind it
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 9 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effectiveness of oral irrigators on periodontal health status and oral hygiene of orthodontic patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC oral health · 2024Pooled it
- The effects of using water flosser versus interdental brush on gingival health in patients with mandibular bonded retainer - a randomized controlled trial.BMC oral health · 2026Trial
- The effect of dental floss sequence on plaque removal efficacy and periodontal health: a randomized controlled trial.BMC oral health · 2026Trial
- Effect of fluorescein-containing toothpaste on dental plaque in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances: a randomized clinical trial.BMC oral health · 2025Trial
- [Current applications and future perspectives of automation technologies and devices in oral diagnosis and treatment].Hua xi kou qiang yi xue za zhi = Huaxi kouqiang yixue zazhi = West China journal of stomatology · 2026Review
- Knowledge, attitude, and practice of orthodontic treatment among student patients preparing for or undergoing treatment.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Investigation of the inter-rater reliability of three different plaque indices used in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances.PloS one · 2025Article
- Oral Irrigation Devices: A Scoping Review.Clinical and experimental dental research · 2024Article
- Innovations in oral hygiene tools: a mini review on recent developments.Frontiers in dental medicine · 2024Review
- Assessment of the success and survival of full mouth rehabilitations: a 3 year follow up study.Journal of oral biology and craniofacial researchArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundOrthodontic treatment presents challenges with plaque accumulation around brackets, archwires, and elastics, leading to retained plaque and gingival inflammation. Conventional toothbrushing may not be enough, requiring additional oral hygiene aids like interproximal brushes, dental flosses, and water flossers. Limited research exists on comparing water flossing and interdental flossing in orthodontic patients. Therefore, this study aims to assess their effectiveness in maintaining oral hygiene during active orthodontic treatment.
methodsA single-blind, randomized, parallel clinical study recruited orthodontic patients with full-mouth brackets and archwires. Thirty participants were randomly assigned to either water jet flossing or interdental flossing groups. All participants were instructed to brush twice daily with a provided toothbrush and toothpaste and use the assigned intervention once daily at night. Clinical measures, including the Gingival Bleeding Index (BI), Plaque Index (PI), and Gingival Index (GI), were recorded at baseline and day 14. Descriptive statistics and statistical tests were performed using SPSS software.
resultsThe water jet flossing group demonstrated a slightly higher, albeit non-significant, benefit in plaque removal (median difference of 6.79%%, P = 0.279) and bleeding reduction (median difference of 5.21%%, P = 0.172) compared to the interdental flossing group after two weeks. Both groups showed significant reductions in gingival bleeding index and plaque index from baseline to the 2-week follow-up. The interdental flossing group had median mean percentage differences of 16.13%% (plaque index) and 23.57% (gingival bleeding index), while the water jet flossing group had median percentage differences of 21.87% (plaque index) and 32.29% (gingival bleeding index). No significant changes in gingival index grades were observed in either group.
conclusionBoth water jet flossing and interdental flossing were effective in reducing plaque accumulation and gingival bleeding among orthodontic patients. While no significant differences were found between the two methods, water jet flossing showed a potential advantage. Further research is needed to validate its effectiveness, assess long-term impact, and understand its benefits for orthodontic patients.
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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.