Improved plaque removal efficacy with a new manual toothbrush.

AIM To compare the safety and efficacy of two manual toothbrushes, Oral-B Exceed and Asian Colgate 360 masculine, in removing plaque. METHODS AND MATERIALS The study used an examiner-blind, two-treatment, randomized, four-period (visits) crossover design. At the first visit, subjects received a baseline plaque examination; plaque was scored using the Rustogi et al. Modified Navy Plaque Index (RMNPI) and the Turesky et al. Modified Quigley-Hein Plaque Index (TQHPI). Subjects used their assigned toothbrush for one minute. Post-brushing plaque was assessed. The following three visits were separated by an interval of two to six days. At each visit, subjects were assigned brushes according to their treatment sequence and plaque was scored per the first visit. RESULTS Forty-eight subjects were enrolled in the study; 47 were included in the analysis. Both brushes were found to be safe and both significantly reduced plaque after a single brushing. The Oral-B Exceed was significantly (p<0.001) better than the Asian Colgate 360 masculine at removing whole mouth plaque (18.1% using TQHPI; 9% using RMNPI). The Oral-B Exceed was also significantly better at removing marginal (p=0.001) and approximal (p=0.022) plaque. CONCLUSION The Oral-B Exceed brush removed significantly more whole mouth, approximal, and gingival margin plaque than the Asian Colgate 360 masculine in a four-period crossover clinical comparison.