Oral hygiene Flashcards
Which three things should you do when teaching oral hygiene techniques?
- Sit at the same level as the patient (sit next to them)
- Have good eye contact
- When demonstrating on a model make sure the patient can see what you are demonstrating
How often should you change a manual tooth brush?
Every 2-3 months
What is the best manual handbrush to use?
Small headed medium nylon
(smaller makes access to difficult areas easier)
Which area is most often missed for right handers?
n.b. this is opposite for left handers
Lower right lingual area
(best to teach them to start from here)
How long should you brush each quadrant for?
30 seconds
How long should you brush each surface (e.g. linguals) of each quadrant for?
10 seconds
What is the bass technique?
Angle bristles towards gingival margin at 45 degrees
Keep parallel to gingivae
Use small circles to distrub plaque & move onto next tooth
(ADULTS)
What is the modified Bass technique?
Rolling the brush head towards te occlusal surface following the bass technique
(ADULTS)
What is the scrub technique?
Similar to the Bass tecnique but short scrub action instead of circular movement
= recommended in scientific basis of dental education
(ADULTS)
Are longer or shorter scrubs/circles better?
Shorter
What is Fone’s technique?
Close teeth (in occlusion)
And move in large circles over buccal surfaces
Scrub the remaining surfaces
(CHILDREN)
n.b. as manual dexteruty improves (e.g. start handwriting this should be modified to bass) and as permanent teeth erupt
Up to which age should children be supervised when brushing?
Age 7
What are the two types of electric toothbrush?
- Oscillating rotating
- Sonic
Which is better…
Rechargeable electric toothbrush or battery powered electric toothbrush? and why?
Electric toothbrush
As batteries run down the toothbrush will become less effective
Which angle to the tooth should an electric toothbrush be held?
45 degrees
How long per tooth should an electric toothbrush be held?
1-2 seconds
How often should you change your oscillating electric toothbrush head?
2-3 months
How often should you change your sonic electric toothbrush head?
Every 6 months
Where should you floss?
Areas without bone loss that you cannot clean with an interdental brush
When (5) should you use interspace brushes (single tuft)?
- Partially erupted teeth
- Furcations
- Around implants
- Around fixed appliances
- In severe periodontal pockets
n.b. can be used to clean all teeth around gingival margin - especially in periodontal patients
When are superfloss and floss threaders used?
To clean under bridges and around fixed appliances
What is superfloss?
Has one end that is stiff, thicker than normal
What is a floss threader?
A plastic needle the the floss is passed through the eye and it is taken under the bridge to clean the area
What is the flossing technique?
- Take 20cm of floss
- Wrap one end around each middle finger
- Use thumbs and index fingers to manouvre, gently side forwards and backwards between contact point
- On reaching the curve of the gingival margin curve the floss into a c shape around the tooth surface
- Move up and down a few mm under the gingival margin
What is the loop flossing technique?
Tie the ends of the floss together with two knots on top of each other to make a loop of 5-6cm in diameter
How do you choose the right sized interdental brush?
Expands and contracts as it goes through the tooth
(should have some resistance when pushed through the interdental space)
What is the technique for using interdental brushes?
- You should place it in the interproximal space by pushing /twisting through gingival margin
- Move it in and out a few times angling in different directions
How regularly should you change interdental brushes?
2-3 weeks
What are tongue scrapers used for?
To remove plaque from the dorsals surface of the tongue (a reservoir for plaque bacteria) to reduce halitosis
What are water picks used for?
- Remove food debris
- Irrigate periodontal pockets
- Sometimes chlorhexidine is put into resevoir
How do water picks work?
Pulsating water action
(n.b. still doesnt break up biofilm)
Where should you clean first when brushing?
Interdentally (so fluoride in toothpaste can penetrate interproximal areas)
Should your toothbrush be wet or dry when you start brushing?
Dry
How much toothpaste should under 3s use?
A smear
How much toothpaste should over 3’s use?
Pea sized amount
Why should you not rinse after brushing?
So you dont remove the fluoride residue which will continue working for many hours
- if you do have to rinse put toothpaste around after!
What is the chemical adjunct in corsodyl mouthwash?
Chlorohexidine
