Clinical efficacy of Colgate 360 degrees and three commercially available toothbrushes on the removal of desquamated epithelial cells.

A clinical study was done to evaluate the performance of four toothbrushes on the removal of desquamated epithelial cells after brushing according to the manufacturers' instructions for use. This randomized, crossover-design clinical study compared a new manual toothbrush (Colgate 360 degrees) to two commercially available manual toothbrushes (Oral-B CrossAction and Oral-B Indicator) and a commercially available battery-powered toothbrush (Crest SpinBrush PRO). Adult men and women subjects reported to the clinical facility after a 1-week "washout" period of brushing with a regular fluoride dentifrice and a soft-bristled toothbrush. Participants reported having refrained from oral hygiene procedures, eating, and drinking that morning. After providing a baseline rinse sample, subjects brushed their teeth for 1 minute with their assigned toothbrush and a commercially available fluoride toothpaste, then returned 30 minutes later to provide postuse rinse samples. Subjects refrained from dental hygiene, eating, and drinking during the 30-minute evaluation period. To provide the samples, subjects rinsed with 10 mL of sterile phosphate-buffered saline solution for 10 seconds. Each collected sample was centrifuged, resuspended, and run in a colorimetric assay to determine the level of desquamated epithelial cells found in the rinse as measured by the absorbance at 570 nm. Twenty adults completed the study. At baseline, the mean levels of desquamated epithelial cells for the 4 treatments were 0.70+/-0.27, 0.63+/-0.20, 0.69+/-0.30, and 0.62+/-0.31 for the Colgate 360 degrees, Oral-B Indicator, Crest SpinBrush PRO, and Oral-B CrossAction, respectively. Posttreatment, the mean levels of epithelial cells were 0.19, 0.38, 0.42, and 0.34, respectively. All of the treatments provided a statistically significant reduction compared to their respective baseline. In addition, the Colgate 360 degrees toothbrush was statistically significantly better than the other three toothbrushes in reducing desquamated epithelial cells. Therefore, the results of this randomized, crossover clinical study indicate that the newly designed Colgate 360 degrees manual toothbrush, with a tongue-cleaning implement on the back of the brush head, was statistically significantly more effective than the Oral-B Indicator, Crest SpinBrush PRO, and Oral-B CrossAction toothbrushes in removing desquamated epithelial cells.