The efficacy of a newly designed toothbrush to decrease tooth sensitivity.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this monadic clinical study was to evaluate the reduction in tooth sensitivity among patients who used the Colgate 360 degrees Sensitive toothbrush during an 8-week period. METHODOLOGY: Adult men and women from the northern New Jersey area were required to present two teeth that exhibited sensitivity both to tactile stimulation using the Yeaple Probe and to thermal stimulation using an air blast delivered by a standard dental-unit syringe. After examination of the oral soft and hard tissues, qualifying patients were provided with a Colgate 360 degrees Sensitive toothbrush and a supply of a commercially available, nonsensitive fluoride toothpaste, and instructed to brush their teeth for 1 minute, twice daily (morning and evening), using only the toothbrush and dentifrice provided. No other oral hygiene practices were permitted during the course of the study. After 4 weeks and again after 8 weeks of product use, patients returned to the dental clinic for follow-up examinations of tactile and thermal sensitivity of the baseline-designated sensitive teeth. Examinations of the oral soft and hard tissues also were performed at these followup visits. RESULTS: At the 4-week examinations, patients exhibited a statistically significant 5.49-unit increase in tactile sensitivity score and a statistically significant 0.77-unit decrease in thermal sensitivity score, both indicative of improvements in tooth sensitivity. At the 8-week examinations, patients exhibited a statistically significant 13.78-unit increase in tactile sensitivity score and a statistically significant 1.85-unit decrease in thermal sensitivity score, again both indicative of improvements in tooth sensitivity. CONCLUSION: It can be concluded that brushing sensitive teeth with the new Colgate 360 degrees Sensitive toothbrush will result in a decrease in tooth sensitivity and this decrease in tooth sensitivity will increase over time.