electric toothbrushes / sonic toothbrushes

How effective are electric toothbrushes?

Now that you know some of the important goals that tooth brushing accomplishes the next topic which we need to explore is:

Are electric toothbrushes really valuable tools? Can electric toothbrushes really clean your teeth more effectively than a manual toothbrush?

The historic answer to this question.

The answer to this question depends on the context in which it is asked. From a historic point of view, one existing before some of the modern designs of electric toothbrushes had been developed, the answer (based on the dental research of that time) would have been:

Yes, electric toothbrushes can clean dental plaque from the surface of a person's teeth better than a manual toothbrush, but not necessarily.

The qualifying point for this answer lies in the fact that (if a person is using one of the more primitive designs of electric toothbrushes) a person could achieve superior dental plaque removal with an electric toothbrush, but not if when brushing manually the person would:

• Brush using a proper brushing technique.
• Brush for an adequate length of time.

How long does a person need to brush?

As you might guess, many humans simply aren't self-disciplined enough to brush properly when they use a manual toothbrush. As a general rule, most people should brush their teeth at least twice a day with each brushing period encompassing at least two to three minutes. The fact of the matter is that most of us fail to routinely meet these guidelines.

Actually, the statement that most people aren't self-disciplined enough to brush properly when they use a manual toothbrush is probably a little bit harsh. Research has found that there can be a major discrepancy between the amount of time that a person actually does brush, as compared to the amount of time that they perceive they have brushed.

One study (our Saxer et al reference) found that their test subjects, on average, brushed their teeth for 78 seconds (a little longer than a minute) when they actually thought they were brushing for 141 seconds (over two minutes, an adequate amount of time). So, the intention of these people was appropriate but in reality their actions (actual brushing time) were lacking. (To help with this problem some electric toothbrushes have built in timers that allow you to measure the length of time you have been brushing.)

A more up to date answer to the question: Are electric toothbrushes really valuable tools?

One of the qualifying aspects of our original statement regarding the use of manual toothbrushes in comparison to electric toothbrushes was related to the fact that a great number of people who brush with a manual toothbrush find it difficult to consistently brush using adequate technique.

You might think in terms of modern electric toothbrushes as tools which, on their own, can create an effective brushing action. In a sense all that is required from the user is the ability to move the brush around to various locations in their mouth (an activity that takes very little dexterity). Since the skill level that is needed to brush properly with an electric brush is minimal all a person must do is focus on brushing long enough.

In comparison manual tooth brushing does require a bit of manual dexterity, and also some diligence, both of which are often in short supply. So, in those cases where the skills needed for manual brushing are deficient a good electric toothbrush will probably clean more thoroughly than brushing by hand. Certainly if a person has a set idea or habit about how long they will brush they will probably get more cleaning accomplished, given the same duration of brushing, when using an electric toothbrush rather than a manual one.

The superiority of modern electric toothbrushes over manual toothbrushes was the subject of one research study, our van der Weijden reference. This study evaluated the plaque removing efficiency of three different electric toothbrushes vs. brushing by hand over various time periods ranging from 30 seconds up to 6 minutes. The study found that the use of all three electric toothbrushes was more effective than brushing manually, for all of the time periods evaluated. They also determined that more dental plaque was dislodged with an electric toothbrush in 2 minutes of use than a manual toothbrush used for 6 minutes.

Another paper (our Bowen reference) reviewed clinical studies (published between 1989 and 2002) that evaluated the effectiveness of electric toothbrushes.

Their conclusions were that out of the 46 studies they located 33 supported the superiority of electric toothbrushes over manual brushes. Two of the studies they reviewed stated that their data concluded that manual tooth brushing was superior. The remainder of the studies reviewed either found equal effectiveness for both methods of brushing or else determined that the results their study obtained were inconclusive.