Cleansing efficacy of waist-shaped inter-dental brushes. A randomized-controlled crossover study.

Objective: To compare the cleansing efficacy of waist-shaped versus cylindric inter-dental brushes in patients receiving supportive periodontal therapy.

Materials And Methods: After sample size estimation, 20 periodontal maintenance patients diagnosed with periodontitis stage 3 were recruited. Brushing efficacy of waist-shaped and cylindric inter-dental brushes was evaluated in a randomized-controlled, examiner-blinded, two-period crossover study by assessment of the Turesky modification of Quigley-Hein plaque index (T-QHI) and the papillary bleeding index (PBI) at four sites per tooth.

Results: Seventeen probands with 1,474 tooth sites finished the study. At baseline, median of overall T-QHI scores was 1.4 (interquartile range 1.38-1.92). After 1 month, T-QHI for waist-shaped inter-dental brushes was 1.24 (1.03-1.52); in 15 individuals, T-QHI 0 was the grade most often measured. T-QHI for cylindric brushes was 1.71 (1.18-2.29; p = .042), with T-QHI 0 being the grade most often measured only in seven individuals. The odds ratio for establishing plaque-free inter-dental sites with waist-shaped relative to cylindric brushes was 1.8 [95% CI 1.6-1.9] (p < .001; logistic regression analysis). There were no statistically significant differences between PBI levels of waist-shaped and cylindric brushes.

Conclusion: This study has demonstrated the superiority in cleansing efficacy of waist-shaped over cylindric inter-dental brushes in individuals receiving supportive periodontal treatment.