Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42012718›Full record

ArticleOdontology2026

Plaque disclosing agent as a guide in biofilm removal in patients with fixed orthodontic appliance: a randomized clinical trial.

Magda Mensi, Gianluca Garzetti, Eleonora Scotti, Silvia Marchetti, Carolina Venturi, Laura Di Monda, Annamaria Sordillo, Stefano Calza

Registry-linked trialAbstract read
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Odontology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05428189 (Efficacy of the Disclosing Plaque Agent as a Guide to Remove the Oral Biofilm in Orthodontic Patients), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

NCT05428189 nacompletednot on this map

Efficacy of the Disclosing Plaque Agent as a Guide to Remove the Oral Biofilm in Orthodontic Patients: a Randomised Controlled Trial Study

TypeinterventionalSponsorAzienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale degli Spedali Civili di BresciaRan2020 to 2022Enrolled32ConditionsPlaqueArmsPlaque Disclosing Agent, Airpolishing and ultrasonic debridement
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Magda MensiSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy. magda.mensi@unibs.it.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5807-9338
Gianluca GarzettiSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Eleonora ScottiSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Silvia MarchettiSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Carolina VenturiSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Laura Di MondaSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Annamaria SordilloSection of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Science and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
Stefano CalzaDepartment of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Effective professional plaque removal is of major importance in the prevention of white spot lesions and gingivitis in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances. However, visual identification of plaque can be difficult, especially around brackets, ligatures and wires. The purpose of the present randomized clinical trial was to evaluate the effectiveness of a plaque disclosing agent (PDA) as a visual guide for biofilm removal. Thirty-two systematically and periodontally healthy adults with fixed orthodontic appliances and Plaque Index (PI) >  = 25% were enrolled from October 2020 to May 2022, the subjects were equally randomized into test and control group. Primary outcome was the change in the difference in percentage of residual plaque area (RPA) between the two study groups. In the test group, a PDA was applied before professional oral hygiene, whilst the control group received a hygiene session without disclosing. The PDA was then re-applied at the end of the treatment in both groups, and the RPA was assessed via Image-J software analysis of standardized frontal photos and compared between groups. The average RPA in the test group was 3.9% (CI 95% 2.6%; 5.1%), which resulted significantly lower than in the control group, where it reached 12.0% (CI 95% 8.0%-16.0%) (p-value < 0.001). The percentage of area with residual plaque was modelled using a beta-regression model. The use of plaque disclosing agents as guidance for professional oral hygiene treatment leads to improved plaque removal in patients with fixed orthodontic appliances. NCT05428189, 2022-06-08, retrospectively registered.

Indexed as

Dental biofilmOral hygieneOrthodonticsPlaque disclosing

Identifiers

PMID42012718

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

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.