Plaque control is the most essential Step towards maintaining a proper and a healthy Oral Environment.
What is Dental Plaque: It is a highly specific variable structural entity formed by sequential colonization of microorganisms on the tooth surface, epithelium and Restorations. The natural physiologic forces that clean the oral cavity are in-efficient in removing Dental Plaque.
What is Plaque Control: It is the removal of microbial plaque and the prevention of its accumulation on the teeth and adjacent gingivaltissues. Besides it also deals with the prevention of Calculus formation.
Methods of Plaque Control:
- Mechanical Plaque Control Methods.
- Chemical Plaque Control Methods.
Here i am going to summarize the Various Aids in each of the 2 types of Methods of Plaque control, and will be discussing in detail about each of them in the later Posts.
Mechanical Plaque Control Aids:
1) ToothBrushes:
- Manual Toothbrush
- Electrical Toothbrush
2) Interdental Aids:
- Dental Floss
- Triangular Tooth Picks
- Interdental Brushes
- Yarn
- Superfloss
- Perio-Aid
- Rubber Tip Stimulator
- Balsa Wood Edge
- Gauze Strips
- Pipe Cleansers
- water Irrigation Device
- Denture & Partial Clasp Brushes
- Cleansing Solutions
The Plaque control agents which are divided basically into Mechanical and Chemical Agents.
The Chemical agents which act on the Plaque ultrastructurally and prevent the formation of Plaque are usefull in Prevention than in a cure.
Classification of Chemical Plaque Control Agents:
First Generation Anti Plaque Agents:
These are capable of reducing plaque upto 20-50 %. They exhibit poor retention within the mouth.
Ex. Antibiotics, Phenols, Quaternary Ammonium compounds and Sanguanarine.
Second Generation Anti Plaque Agents:
They produce an overall plaque reduction of about 70-90% and these are better retained than those of the first generation. These exhibit betterretention by oral tissues and show slow release properties.
Ex. Bisbiguanides (Chlorhexidine).
Third Generation Anti Plaque Agents:
They block binding of microorganisms to the tooth or to each other. They have poor retention capacity when compared to the Second generation Chlorhexidine.
Ex. Delmopinol.
Apart from these we also have
- Enzymes: Ex: Mucinase, dehydrate pancreas, Mutanase, Dextranase, Lactoperoxidase, Thiocyanate Dynthetase.
- Povidine Iodine
mechanical Plaque Control
Thanks very much Varun. God bless you
it really simplified everything and im very much interested in learning things from u sir! please help me out in anyway you can by your notes. thankyou!:)