Effectiveness of New Activated Charcoal Orthodontic Toothbrush on Plaque Removal in Orthodontic Patients Using Orthodontic Plaque Index and Gingival Index: A Randomized Cross-Over Study

Abstract

Background: This study was conducted to assess the Effectiveness Of New Activated Charcoal Orthodontic Toothbrush On Plaque Removal In Orthodontic Patients Using Orthodontic Plaque Index And Gingival Index: A Randomized Cross-Over Study.

Material and methods: A small-scale study (pilot study) was conducted beforehand to assess the practicality of carrying out the main research. This preliminary investigation examined key areas such as the ease of recruiting participants, the effectiveness of data collection methods, and whether participants would follow the study guidelines. The pilot study's results demonstrated alignment with the main study's intentions and objectives, hence proceed with the full-fledged research.

Results: When intra-brush comparison was made for the observation period of complete six weeks, i.e., T0-T3, for the 60 patients having three types of brushes (Table 4). For brush I, there was an overall improvement in the mean gingival index from baseline to T3 (0.138±0.404, p-value=0.010) that was significant, while significant improvement was seen at all the intervals except for T1 to T2 (-0.088±0.144, p-value=0.000). At all the intervals no significant difference was observed in Eastmann interdental bleeding index. Also, there was an overall significant improvement in the mean OPI score from T0 to T3 (0.267±0.972, p-value=0.038). However, a significant improvement was seen at only T0 to T1 (0.300±1.078, p-value=0.035). For Brush II, on the contrary, no significant change in the mean gingival index was seen at any observation interval. When the mean Eastmann bleeding index was observed, there was a significant improvement from T0 to T3 (0.367±1.262 p-value=0.028), where significant improvement was seen at only T2-T3 (0.300±1.046, p-value=0.030).

Conclusion: Intragroup observation showed that the charcoal-activated v-cut toothbrush significantly reduced plaque and improved gingival health over six weeks of observation. More reduction was seen in the initial phases, showing its effectiveness in controlling orthodontic patients’ oral hygiene. The conventional orthodontic toothbrush significantly reduced plaque and improved gingival health over six weeks of observation, showing its effectiveness in controlling oral hygiene in orthodontic patients.  The charcoal-activated flat-cut toothbrush significantly reduced plaque and improved gingival health over six weeks of observation, showing its effectiveness in controlling oral hygiene in orthodontic patients. The charcoal-activated V-cut toothbrush showed the highest efficiency in plaque reduction, followed by conventional orthodontic toothbrushes and charcoal-activated flat-cut toothbrushes in orthodontic patients. However, no significant difference between the three was found.