A comparison of the Braun Oral-B Plaque Remover (D5) electric and a manual toothbrush in affecting gingivitis.

This three-month clinical trial was designed to compare the effect of an electric and a manual toothbrush on reducing primarily gingivitis and secondarily, plaque, in a cohort of 70 healthy adults. After baseline evaluation of gingivitis, soft tissue trauma, and plaque, patients were randomly assigned to one of the two experimental groups, shown an instructional tooth brushing videotape, and had their teeth cleaned. Soft tissue trauma was again scored at 2 weeks. At 12 weeks all three clinical parameters were again evaluated. The results showed statistically significant reductions (baseline vs. 3-month) in both whole mouth (p = 0.003) and interproximal (p = 0.008) gingivitis scores for the electric toothbrush group. No significant reduction at three months compared to baseline was seen for the manual brush group. When gingivitis reductions were compared over the three-month test period, the electric brush was significantly better than the manual toothbrush in both whole mouth (p = 0.0007) and interproximal (p = 0.002) gingivitis reduction. No increase in soft tissue trauma and no significant differences in plaque reductions were seen for either toothbrush.