Oral Hygiene Products

Toothbrushes

As a general rule, a tooth brush has to fit. That is you need to select a brush head which is not too large for the space it must clean, a handle which is long enough to reach the area to be cleaned, and bristles that are efficient and soft.

We place all of our patients on soft bristle brushes. Hard or medium are too abrasive and if used improperly with too much force, they will cause the gums to receed from this abrasion. We recommend Wisdom Sensitive, Butler Gum and Crest Complete. Remember.....Only Soft!

Two types of specialty brushes which are very helpful are the interdental brushes and the unitufted brushes. Interdental brushes are particularly handy when you have wide spaces between your teeth. We recommend the Butler Proxabrush or the Oral B Interdental Brush Unitufted brushes are very good for cleaning around crowns, for the inside of the lower back teeth and the back sides of the last molars in your mouth. We recommend the Butler End Tuft or the Sulcabrush.

Electric toothbrushes can be very helpful, especially to those with dexterity limitations or simply want the convenience of letting a device do the work. We recommend the Oral B-Braun Plaque Remover. To visit their site, go to Dental Links.

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Tooth Pastes
Selection of a tooth paste should depend primarily on what you want the product to do. Do not try the shotgun approach by selecting one which tries to do everything.

For bad breath--
Get a paste with chlorine dioxide. We recommend Oxyfresh. The best results are obtained when you use it with the Oxyfresh rinse. This is important fact: you must also use a tongue scraper to cleans your tongue since your tongue generates most of thecompounds responsible for breath problems. Oxyfresh is not sold in stores. Click on the blue for info on how to order it.Oxyfresh

For Periodontal Disease and Gingivitis--
The Food and Drug Administration has recently approved triclosan, a potent antibacterial substance which until this point had been used primarily in antibacterial soaps, for use in toothpaste. We are anticipating favorable results with this product. Look for it in Colgate- Total. To visit their site, go to Dental Links. Prior to this, we advised most of our patients to use Listerine-Tartar Control. Note-Any tooth paste, without a good brushing technique, will not be very effective.

For a description of instructions for proper Oral Hygiene Techniques. [top]

Flosses

Generally, we like our patients to use the widest diameter floss that will fit btween your teeth without shredding. Also, research shows that it doesn't make any diffference if the floss is waxed or unwaxed. Oral B and Butler make excellent flosses. Some of our patients like Oral B- Ultra, because it is capable of removing a lot of plaque. Our patients who have extremely tight contacts between their teeth, prefer Glide because it will not shred.

If you have a bridge that is cemented to your teeth with one or more false teeth (pontics) and cannot floss between them, you must use a floss threader. This is also true if you have two or more crowns splinted together. There are many brands of floss threaders and they all work well. The easiest product to use however is Oral B's Superfloss.

Finally, if you lack dexterity, try a floss handle. Butler makes a good one. Hint-The floss must be mounted on the handle very tightly for it to work without shredding. [top]

Rinses

Rinsing after you've brushed and flossed is an integral part of your oral hygiene regimen. The most effective ingredient for breath improvment is chlorine dioxide which is in Oxyfresh. Other active ingredients for plaque control in the order of relative effectiveness are: 1. chlorhexidine (Peridex or Periogard) which is only available by prescription, 2. phenolics-alchol combinations (Listerine or its' generic equivalents), 3. chlorine dioxide rinses (Oxyfresh). and 4. quartenary ammonium-alcohol combinantion (Cepacol or Scope)

Also note, if your mouth is "dry", alcohol based rinses will increase the dryness. Therefore, use a non-alcoholic rinse, like Oxyfresh..

Oral Irrigators

These devices utilize an electric pump to jet water, or water and rinse combinations, between the teeth and slightly under the gums. They are particularly helpful to patients who are poor flossers by choice or have dexterity limitations, those who have cemented bridgework with limited access to floss, and those with braces.

Several studies have shown that hydromagnetic irrigators such as the Oxycare 3000 by Oxyfresh or The Hydrofloss, reduce the calcification process of calculus (tartar) formation.

Many studies have demonstrated that using this irrigator, with a dilution of an antimicrobial rinse in the reservoir, will help patient having gingivitis. This improvement was seen as evidenced by less bleeding and inflammation present in the gums and the greates improvements were seen in patients with inadequate flossing habits. [top]

Tongue Scrapers

Do not overlook this important part of the oral hygiene regimen. If you examine the top of the tongue, you will notice a rough, velvety character. It may even have a grayish or whitish coating. This surface of the tongue is a haven for plaque. You'll be amazed at how much material comes off of your tongue when you use a tongue scraper. It is also an essential step if you are try io improve your breath freshness. Tongue scrapers are often hard to find. Oxyfresh makes an excellent one, called The Oolit.

Oxyfresh Products

Almost all of the products I've mentioned that are prescribed for our patient use are easily obtained as over the counter products at pharmacies or the dental departments in larger stores. there are two exceptions The Oxyfresh products are not found in stores and must be ordered directly from the manufacturer. Their number is 1-800-333-7374. using ref. number #12648901. Visit their site Oxyfresh. The chlorhexidine rinses, Peridex and Periogard are available only by prescription through your dentist.