title: An in vitro evaluation of electric toothbrushes.
abstract: Four commercially available electric toothbrushes (Sonicare, Braun Electric Toothbrush, Interplak, and Blend-a-Dent) were assessed both for their operating characteristics and their ability to remove a "food debris" medium. The Sonicare and Blend-a-Dent have a lateral vibratory action, while the Interplak and Braun produce a rotary movement of the brush head. The vibratory action of the Sonicare was susceptible to loading. All devices produced both stable-pulsating cavitation and acoustic microstreaming that was demonstrated in vitro using a suspension of particles in water. Their effectiveness in removing a food debris medium was assessed with and without water. Three of the brushes (Sonicare, Braun, and Blend-a-Dent) were similar in their ability to remove the plaque, and all were superior to the Interplak; its streaming forces removed no food debris. The results indicated that the Blend-a-Dent was the most effective brush design in vitro, although the differences between Blend-a-Dent and Sonicare were not statistically significant.
authors.affiliation: University of Birmingham, School of Dentistry, Birmingham, England.
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: Khambay
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Walmsley
mesh_terms: D003773:Dental Plaque / Q000628:therapy; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005502:Food; D055585:Physical Phenomena; D010825:Physics; D012399:Rotation; D014099:Toothbrushing / Q000295:instrumentation*; D014732:Vibration