Miswak use for periodontal health in adults

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This review of the effectiveness of the miswak in reducing plaque and gingivitis in adults included 9 RCTs. The included studies were small with the findings indicating that the miswak reduced plaque and gingivitis scores to a level comparable to toothbrush in the short term.

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Orthodontic ligation methods and biofilm formation

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This review comparing elastomeric ligation with self-ligation and steel wire ligation for orthodontic appliances and their effect on clinical outcomes included 11 RCTs. The findings suggest no significant differences although the trials were small with a majority at high risk of bias.

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Plaque disclosing methods: Do they lead to improvements in oral health?

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Disclosing solutions

This review of whether plaque-disclosing (PD) methods, applied by dental professionals or at-home with verbal oral hygiene instruction (OHI)improved plaque control compared with OHI alone included 7 RCTs involving 430 patients.

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Rubber bristles interdental cleaners as an adjunct to toothbrushing

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This review of the efficacy of rubber bristles interdental cleaners (RBIC) as an adjunct to toothbrushing (TB) included 6 RCTs. The findings provide weak to very weak certainty evidence for the use of RBICs for gingivitis and plaque reduction.

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Propolis-based mouthwashes

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This review evaluating the evidence regarding the efficacy of propolis-based mouthwash on dental plaque and gingival inflammation included 9 RCTs. While the findings suggest potential benefit from propolis-based mouthwash the quality of the available evidence is very low and additional high quality studies are needed to assess any benefits.

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Salvadora persica (Miswak) mouthrinse is it as effective as chlorhexidine mouthwash?

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This review comparing the effectiveness of Salvadora persica-containing mouthrinses against chlorhexidine or placebo included 19 studies providing low to very low quality evidence of its effectiveness.

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Orthodontic patients: Reminders improved oral hygiene and compliance

Recent research has shown how behavioural activation can be delivered via smartphones.

14 RCTs were included in this review of the effect of different reminders on oral hygiene and compliance in orthodontic patients. For most outcomes measured beneficial effects were seen in the patients receiving reminders.

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Neem-based mouthwash –little evidence available

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This review of the effectiveness of neem-based mouthwash for improving plaque control and gingival health only identified 3 low quality RCTs of short duration providing little evidence to assess its effectiveness.

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Chlorhexidine mouthwash better than chlorhexidine dentifrice or gel at inhibiting plaque but it leads to more tooth discolouration

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The role of chlorhexidine (CHX) in inhibiting plaque growth has been extensively studied. The aim of the review was to evaluate the effectiveness of CHX-containing dentifrice (DF) or gel (CHX DF/gel) compared with CHX mouthwash (MW). Searches were conducted in Medline-PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and Embase databases. Randomized controlled trials [read the full story…]