Purpose: To compare the clinical efficacy and safety of a new oral hygiene device, the Sonicare Elite toothbrush, with a soft-bristled manual toothbrush (Oral-B 35).
Materials and methods: This study was designed as a single-blind crossover with two arms. A sample of 25 subjects who met the entrance criteria was divided into two sequences at random: manual-Sonicare Elite, or Sonicare Elite-manual. Within each treatment arm, subjects were given a dental cleaning and polish, and written brushing instructions, and were allowed to use the assigned brush for at least 10 days at home before reporting for two plaque reduction evaluations. Upon completion of the first treatment arm, subjects were assigned the remaining brush and repeated the same protocol as before. Pre- and post-brushing scores were recorded at all visits after 12-18 hours of overnight plaque accumulation and were used to calculate a plaque reduction score at each evaluation. The scores were then averaged over the repeated visits with the same brush and the averages from the two brushes were paired within subjects. ANOVA was performed to determine if a difference existed between the two groups in terms of overall plaque reduction.
Results: The Sonicare Elite achieved a significantly greater reduction in plaque than the manual toothbrush (36.0% compared to 25.7%; P < 0.05). No adverse events related to either brush were reported during the study.