Effect of interdental brush design on plaque during nonsurgical periodontal therapy

The aim of this randomized controlled trial was to evaluate the interproximal cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped compared with straight soft interdental brushes in patients undergoing nonsurgical periodontal therapy. Ten patients diagnosed with periodontitis stage II or III were scheduled for nonsurgical periodontal therapy. Baseline plaque control record (PCR), modified approximal plaque index (API), papillary bleeding index (PBI), probing pocket depth (PPD), and bleeding on probing (BOP) were evaluated. Four interdental spaces of equal sizes were determined, and baseline plaque indices (PI) were assessed on eight surfaces of the respective adjacent teeth, resulting in 640 measuring positions. Interdental brushes with a straight or waist-shaped design were randomly allocated to the right or left side, and patients received oral hygiene instructions. Follow-up measurements including PCR, API, PBI, and site-specific PI were performed during initial nonsurgical periodontal therapy sessions and reevaluation which was undertaken 8 weeks afterwards. PCR, API, and PBI decreased significantly compared with baseline at each time point (p