Introduction
Clean teeth are the most important feature to show a confident personality. Many people lack confidence if the teeth are not clean and bright. In this article, we will know different types of brushing techniques and which type of brushing technique can be advised to you. Here in the blog, you can get a theoretical idea of brushing techniques. If you want to understand it well, then look for YouTube videos or you can also visit your dentist and learn the perfect way of brushing. If you know the right technique, you can avoid harming your oral health.
1. Selection of toothbrush and toothpaste
Depending on the hardness of bristles, soft or extra soft types of toothbrushes are recommended for daily use, to avoid the gingival recession (reduction in gums). Also it is necessary to change your toothbrush every 3-4 months, as the bristles get flared off. This can harm your gums.
Toothpaste should contain fluoride. Choosing the toothpaste wisely is also a task. If you have stains more than calculus, you can go with teeth-whitening toothpastes. If calculus is more then choose tartar controlling type of toothpaste. In case of sensitivity, desensitizing toothpastes are available. To learn
2. The Two-Minute Rule
It is compulsory for everyone to brush your teeth for at least 2 minutes. Many people rush and do not brush for even 2 minutes. This does not allow the teeth to get completely clean. So you need to divide your teeth in 4 quadrants and pay attention to every quadrant properly. This will help in overall cleaning of your teeth.
3. Selection of Brushing Techniques
Following are the different types of brushing techniques. Let’s understand each technique and then you can choose your method of brushing. Understand the first technique properly. Remaining techniques are very similar with some minor changes.
Vibratory Techniques: Bass, Stillman and Charters techniques
Roll: Roll or modified Stillman technique
Circular: Fone's technique
Vertical: Leonard technique
Horizontal: Scrub technique
4. The Bass Technique
It is also called the Bass Technique. It is recommended for those people who have any gum diseases or periodontal diseases. This is the ideal method to remove plaque and prevent gum diseases. It is suitable for most individuals, especially those with healthy gums.
Method: Hold the toothbrush horizontally on the flat surface of teeth and tilt at 45-degree angle towards the gingiva (gum line). Start brushing from the most backward tooth in each quadrant, in back and forth strokes in vibratory motion for 20 times. Brush on 3 teeth at a time. There should be a gentle pressure while moving the toothbrush and the strokes should be shorter. Continue the same technique on all the teeth. You will need some time to get used to this method, but it is the right way to brush your teeth.
5. Modified Bass Technique
There is modification to this bass technique and it is called modified bass technique. Generally, this method of brushing is recommended for adults and teenagers.
Method: The process is completely the same as above along with an extra step at last. After vibratory and back and forth movements, there is a sweep movement. You need to sweep the bristles on the teeth. This will help to clean completely.
6. The Stillman’s Technique
This method is recommended for people with gingival recession. In this technique, there is gentle pressure on teeth and not on the gums. It is helpful for ensuring thorough cleaning of teeth surfaces without harming gums.
Method: Place the bristles of the toothbrush partly on the gums(gingiva) and partly on the cervical(middle) portion of the teeth at a 45-degree angle. A firm vibratory motion is applied with very gentle and soft pressure to clean the gingiva. Bristles should not move more and only vibrations should be blanching out the gingiva.
7. The Charter’s Technique
This method is recommended for those people who have receded interdental papillae. It means there is a gap in between two teeth. Also in the cases of periodontal surgeries for temporary cleaning while the healing process is going on. This is also recommended for people undergoing orthodontic treatments.
Method: Here the brush is pointed at 45-degrees towards the crown and opposite side of the gums. Other steps are same as described in the first technique.
8. Modified Stillman’s Technique
This method is also used for individuals with gingival recession and root exposure. A soft or medium multi tufted brush should be used for this technique as it avoids recession(wearing of gums).
Method: Toothbrush is held the same like Stillman’s Technique, with bristles pointing in an apical(towards the roots) direction and at an oblique angle to the long axis of the teeth. Other instructions are similar to Stillman’s Technique. For cleaning the back or inner surfaces of teeth, one can hold the toothbrush in vertical position.
It is a circular technique and is recommended for small children. Children are most likely to avoid brushing, so this method is the simplest one amongst all.
Method: Brush is first directed apically(towards the roots) and then held parallel to the teeth and moved in a circular motion. Make sure that all the teeth are cleaned.
Conclusion
In this blog, we learnt about different brushing techniques and which one could be suitable for each individual. Along with the teeth, make sure you clean the tongue as well as the inner walls of cheeks. Choosing the most appropriate technique and brushing in the correct way will avoid the recession of gums as well as teeth mobility. In the next blog, we’ll learn to choose right toothbrushes as I did not cover the topic fully in this blog. I have used images from the books - Carranza's Clinical Periodontology and Essentials of Clinical Periodontology by Shantipriya Reddy.