Trial reportHead & face medicine2026
Effect of plaque-disclosing agents on biofilm removal: single-center randomized trial in fourth-year dental students.
Trial report in Head & face medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06080672 (The Effect of Disclosing Dental Plaque on Plaque Index and Gingival Index in Istanbul Medipol University Faculty of Dentistry Students), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The trial behind it
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The Effect of Disclosing Dental Plaque on Plaque Index and Gingival Index in Istanbul Medipol University Faculty of Dentistry Students
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTo assess whether plaque-disclosing agents (PDA) improve self-performed mechanical plaque removal and gingival health compared with standard instruction alone in dental students. DESIGN/
settingSingle-center, parallel-group randomized controlled trial (1:1), Istanbul Medipol University (Oct 2023–Jan 2024).
participants124 fourth-year dental students (age 20–30 years) randomized to test (n = 62) or control (n = 62).
interventionsBoth groups received standardized oral-hygiene instruction (Modified Bass; interdental cleaning guidance). The test group additionally received PDA before brushing as a visual aid; all outcomes were measured after triple rinsing. PRIMARY OUTCOME (PRESPECIFIED): Between-group difference in change (Δ) in Plaque Index (PI) from baseline to week 1. SECONDARY OUTCOMES: ΔPI baseline→post-brushing and baseline→month 1; ΔGingival Index (GI) baseline→week 1 and baseline→month 1. MASKING: Outcome assessor blinded at the time of measurement (after rinsing).
resultsAll 124 randomized participants completed follow-up and were analyzed. Both groups showed short-term improvement (immediate reduction in PI post-brushing; GI improvement at week 1). The primary outcome showed no significant between-group difference in ΔPI from baseline to week 1. Secondary analyses similarly found no significant between-group differences in ΔPI or ΔGI at month 1.
conclusionsIn a population with high baseline oral-hygiene proficiency, adding PDA did not confer a measurable advantage over standardized instruction alone on PI or GI change. PDA may be more informative in lay populations with lower oral-health literacy.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov, NCT06080672, registered on October 12, 2023.
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