Effect of 5 Oral Hygiene Teaching Methods on Orthodontic Patients: A Single-Blind Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Background: The aim of the present study was to determine the most effective oral hygiene method in fixed orthodontic patients. Methods: A total of 125 patients who had recently started their orthodontic treatment and had not received oral hygiene instructions were randomly assigned to 5 groups (n=25): verbal instructions (V), verbal instructions plus pamphlet (V+P), verbal instructions plus video film (V+F), verbal instructions plus the use of disclosing agents (V+D), and pamphlet plus the use of disclosing agents (P+D). One week after the installation of orthodontic appliance, plaque index (PI) and gingival index (GI) were recorded and oral hygiene instructions were provided. One week and 4 weeks after oral hygiene instructions, PI and GI were recorded again. Results: PI and GI showed significant decreases in 5 groups after 1 week and 4 weeks (P ˂ 0.05). No statistically significant differences were detected between the 5 study groups in terms of plaque reduction after one week. However, after 4 weeks PI values were significantly lower in V+D group compared to P+D group. Regarding GI, V+D method resulted in a significantly lower GI than P+D after 1 week and 4 weeks. Conclusions: To sum up, all the oral hygiene motivation methods applied in this study can be effective in decreasing PI and GI. However, it appears that the best way is the verbal oral hygiene instruction plus the use of disclosing agents.