Laboratory evaluation of extrinsic stain removal by a specially engineered sonic powered toothbrush with unique sensing and control technologies.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this laboratory study was to evaluate extrinsic stain removal from teeth by a specially engineered sonic powered toothbrush with unique sensing and control technologies, using the Triple Clean and the Sensitive refill brush heads, in comparison to a manual flat-trim toothbrush. METHODS Twelve (12) artificially stained bovine teeth were tested with each product. The percentage of stain removed by each product was calculated by taking the ratio of the amount of stain removed by brushing for 800 strokes to the total amount of stain removed by subsequent application of a dental prophylaxis. The stain was quantified by measuring the light reflected by the stained teeth with a spectrophotometer. Data were reported as L*, lightness of the stain, and as W*, a whiteness index comprising the lightness, hue, and chroma of reflected light. Statistical analyses were performed separately for the AL* and AW* scores. Comparisons of the toothbrushes with respect to baseline-adjusted deltaL* and deltaW* scores were performed using an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA). Post-ANCOVA pair-wise comparisons of the study toothbrushes were performed using Tukey's test for multiple comparisons. All statistical tests of hypotheses were two-sided, and employed a minimum level of significance of 0.05. RESULTS The percentage of stain removed by the sonic powered toothbrush, using either the Triple Clean brush head or the Sensitive brush head under laboratory test conditions, is superior (p < 0.05) to the percentage of stain removed by the manual flat-trim toothbrush when analyzed for both the deltaL* and deltaW* scores. The mean percentage of stain removed was 62.10 for the power toothbrush with the Triple Clean brush head, 49.01 for the power toothbrush with the Sensitive brush head, and 30.56 for the manual flat-trim toothbrush when calculated using deltaL* scores. The mean percentage of stain removed was 59.89 for the power toothbrush with the Triple Clean brush head, 46.83 for the power toothbrush with the Sensitive brush head, and 29.25 for the manual flat-trim toothbrush when calculated using deltaW* scores. CONCLUSIONS This new specially engineered sonic powered toothbrush with unique sensing and control technologies effectively removes extrinsic stains from the surface of teeth under laboratory test conditions with both the Triple Clean and the Sensitive brush heads. The effectiveness of stain removal with either brush head is significantly greater than the effectiveness of stain removal of a manual flat-trim toothbrush under these conditions.