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Comparison of the Plaque Removal and Cleaning Efficiency of Regular and Large-Head Toothbrushes
J Dent Hyg Sci 2024;24:125-33
Published online September 30, 2024;  https://doi.org/10.17135/jdhs.2024.24.3.125
© 2024 Korean Society of Dental Hygiene Science.

Ji-won Lee* , Myoung-Hee Kim* , Koung-hee Kim , Da-bin Han , Yu-jin Hwang , and Young Sun Hwang†

Department of Dental Hygiene, College of Health Science, Eulji University, Seongnam 13135, Korea
Correspondence to: †Young Sun Hwang, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7012-3434
Department of Dental Hygiene, College of Health Science, Eulji University, 553 Sanseong-daero, Sujeong-gu, Seongnam 13135, Korea
Tel: +82-31-740-7493, Fax: +82-31-740-7352, E-mail: kiteys@eulji.ac.kr
*These authors contributed equally to this work.
Received July 9, 2024; Revised July 25, 2024; Accepted July 29, 2024.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Background: The management of dental plaque and the appropriate use of oral hygiene tools are crucial for oral health. With increasing interest in oral health care, various oral hygiene products are available on the market. As the most basic oral hygiene tool, the large-head toothbrush has gained significant consumer interest. This study evaluates the suitability of large-head toothbrushes as oral hygiene tools by comparing their efficacy with that of regular-sized toothbrushes.
Methods: We evaluated the efficacy of large-head and regular-sized toothbrushes. The amount of dental plaque before and after brushing was measured using quantitative light-induced fluorescence digital (QLF-D) images and the plaque index (PI) in adult participants with more than 28 teeth (n=15/group). After brushing, the collected toothbrushes were rinsed 10 times in clean water, thoroughly dried, and weighed on an electronic scale. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test with SPSS Statistics Version 29.0.
Results: QLF-D analysis showed a significant decrease in fluorescence intensity scores after use of a regular-sized toothbrush, whereas the scores after use of a large-head toothbrush were not significantly reduced. PI measurements indicated significant reductions in dental plaque for both head types. However, detailed analysis by tooth surface revealed that the regular-sized toothbrush significantly reduced plaque on the proximal, palatal/lingual, and labial/buccal surfaces. In contrast, the large-head toothbrush only showed significant reductions in place on the proximal and palatal/lingual surfaces, not on the labial/buccal surface. Additionally, compared to the regular-sized toothbrush, the large-head toothbrush retained more toothpaste residue despite similar cleaning efforts after brushing.
Conclusion: Compared to the regular-sized toothbrush, the large-head toothbrush showed lower overall efficacy in dental plaque removal. The results of this study provide significant information regarding the use of large-head toothbrushes.
Keywords : Dental devices, Dental plaque, Mouth diseases, Oral hygiene, Quantitative light-induced fluorescence

September 2024, 24 (3)
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