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Plaque cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped interdental brushes among individuals with open interproximal spaces: a systematic review

Evidence-Based Dentistry (2024)Cite this article

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Abstract

Background

The shape and design of interdental brushes are crucial for appropriate adaptation to the interproximal areas, despite their excellent cleaning efficacy. The aim of this review is to assess and compare the available data on the plaque cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped interdental brushes with any other shaped-interdental brushes among patients with wide interdental spaces.

Methods

Scopus, PubMed, Cochrane, Science Direct, EBSCO Host, Lilacs, Science Direct, Web of Science, and Google Scholar were searched from the earliest available year (2011) till May 15, 2024. PICO Strategy: P: Individuals with open interproximal spaces; I: Waist-shaped interdental brushes; C: Any other shaped interdental brushes; O: Interproximal plaque cleaning efficacy. The review only comprised randomized controlled trials. The risk of bias assessment and quality of evidence was assessed using the RoB-2 Tool and GRADE Tool respectively.

Results

Three full-text publications that met the requirements for eligibility underwent additional processing for data extraction. The overall results of the review suggest that the plaque cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped interdental brushes is better than straight/cylindrical-shaped interdental brushes in patients with open interdental spaces; especially on the buccal and lingual line angles. However, the pooling of data was not possible due to the high heterogeneity between the studies.

Conclusion

The current review suggests that the plaque cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped interdental brushes could be better than straight or cylindrical shaped-interdental brushes in patients with open interproximal spaces, especially in buccal and lingual line angles. However, further research should focus on appropriate methodological techniques to increase overall reporting quality and limit the possibility of bias.

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Fig. 1: PRISMA flowchart.
Fig. 2: Risk of bias assessment using the RoB-2 tool.
Fig. 3: Quantitative analysis.

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Data availability

The data supporting this systematic review’s findings are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to privacy restrictions but are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health Dentistry, Dr. D.Y. Patil Dental College and Hospital, Dr. D.Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, 411018, India

    Subhashree Mohapatra

  2. Department of Oral Pathology and Microbiology, Dr. D.Y. Patil Dental College and Hospital, Dr. D.Y. Patil Vidyapeeth, Pimpri, Pune, 411018, India

    Rahul Mohandas

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  1. Subhashree Mohapatra
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Contributions

Subhashree Mohapatra: concept, design, and definition of intellectual content, literature search, data acquisition, data analysis, manuscript preparation. Rahul Mohandas: data acquisition, manuscript editing and manuscript review.

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Correspondence to Rahul Mohandas.

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Mohapatra, S., Mohandas, R. Plaque cleaning efficacy of waist-shaped interdental brushes among individuals with open interproximal spaces: a systematic review. Evid Based Dent (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41432-024-01036-0

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