Study Reveals Waist-Shaped Interdental Brushes Superior in Plaque Removal for Orthodontic Patients

The efficacy of interdental brushes (IDBs) in maintaining oral hygiene for patients with fixed orthodontic appliances has been examined by a study, conducted by researchers from the Department of Orthodontics at the University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and the Children’s Dental Clinic St. Gallen.

The research showed the remarkable effectiveness of IDBs, shedding light on their impact when professionally administered.

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Research Methodology

The study employed a rigorous methodology, characterised as a multi-center, randomised, examiner-blinded crossover design involving three interventions, with the first being a baseline assessment. 

The research cohort consisted of 20 patients, comprising 12 females and 8 males, aged between 12 and 18 years, all of whom had fixed orthodontic devices. The primary focus was on evaluating the performance of two distinct interdental brushes: the conventional cylindrically shaped IDB (IDBG-S [IB]) and the innovative waist-shaped IDB (Circum, CDB-8 [CB]), both manufactured by Top Caredent GmbH, Schönau, Germany.

Importantly, the study stressed professional administration of the interdental brushes, with all brushing procedures conducted by a single operator (C.E.). The assessment targeted specific areas around the brackets, dividing each buccal tooth surface into eight sections, with the main areas of interest being areas 1 and 8. 

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These areas, often challenging for traditional toothbrushes to access, were located mesial (area 1) and distal (area 8) to the bracket edges in the gingival direction. The evaluation of plaque removal effectiveness was carried out using the plaque index (PI) scores, with assessments conducted both before and after the cleaning procedure on the eight tooth surfaces in the bracketed area.

To ensure impartiality, a computer-generated program randomly assigned the IDB sequence to each participant. Moreover, the examiners (L.Z.-G. and Y.W.) responsible for assessing the outcomes remained blinded to the intervention and the random allocation of participants to the different IDBs throughout the study.

Significant Findings

The results of this meticulous study showcased the significant plaque removal efficacy of both interdental brushes. Notably, the waist-shaped IDB (CB) outperformed the conventional cylindrically shaped IDB (IB) with statistical significance (P = 0.002).  

In particular, the waist-shaped CB exhibited a notably higher plaque removal efficacy (CB effect, 0.68; IB effect, 0.21) in the critical main areas 1 and 8, which are often challenging to clean thoroughly. The study included ten participants in each sequence, with all 20 completing the research, and no reported or observed side effects or adverse events.

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