Clinical evaluation of the effect of two types of dental floss on plaque and gingival health.

Abstract

The aim of this clinical study was to evaluate two different flosses (an expanded PTFE-type floss and a nylon waxed floss) on the reduction of dental plaque, gingival health (MGI and BI), and patient preference when used in an oral hygiene program. Sixty adult subjects with gingival inflammation were assigned randomly to two groups. The control group were those subjects that used the nylon waxed floss and the test group were those subjects that used the PTFE-type floss. At 0, 2, 5, and 6 weeks, the patients were scored for plaque (PI), gingivitis (MGI), and interproximal bleeding sites (BI). The data were then analyzed statistically within each group and between both groups using Student t tests. It was found that there was no statistical difference between the two types of dental floss regarding PI, MGI, and BI. The only discrepancy was at the end of the second week, where the PTFE-type floss showed a significantly greater reduction in BI as compared to the nylon floss (p less than 0.01). Here the percent reduction of the PTFE-type floss was 56.1%, while the nylon waxed floss showed a percent reduction of only 39.1%. At the fifth week of examination the type of floss used was reversed for one week. This was done to determine patient preference. It was found that 74.5% of the study population preferred the PTFE-type floss while only 24.5% preferred the nylon waxed floss.