P.K. Sasikumar, Shankar Shanmugam, Sakthi Saranya Devi, M.Kirthika

ABSTRACT

Aim: The purpose of this short-term, randomized trial was to assess the efficacy of the addition of daily oral irrigation and dental floss to manual tooth brushing and also compared to determine which regimen had the greatest effect on the reduction of plaque and gingivitis. Material and methods: A parallel clinical study of 70 subjects was performed over a period of four weeks. The subjects in the first group (OIS) were trained in the correct use of oral irrigator, once per day in the evening and the second group (DF) were trained to brush their teeth two times per day, in the morning and evening, with uses of standard dental floss. Pre-scaling baseline data was recorded; subjects were re-evaluated after the scaling regarding their oral hygiene and gingival status in the 2nd and 4th week follow-up. Results: After four weeks, subjects who used oral irrigator associated regular tooth brushing demonstrated that significant decreases (p=<0.001) in papillary bleeding, of 16.80%, with an initial mean PBI value of 0.93 (±0.15) and a final mean PBI value of 0.59 (±0.25). Conclusion: These results supported the clinical efficacy of oral irrigator for the removal of bacterial plaque from proximal tooth areas. When combined with manual tooth brushing the daily use of an oral irrigator with standard jet tip, is significantly more effective in reducing gingival bleeding scores than is the use of dental floss, as determined within the limits of this 4-week study design