Toothbrush for the spaces between the teeth
Even if you are very good with your toothbrush and clean optimally, special aids for cleaning the interdental spaces are indispensable. Here you can use dental floss, dental sticks and interdental space brushes (= tooth space brushes).Interdental space brushes are small brushes with holder, which usually consist of plastic bristles arranged in a spiral. They can be used to clean especially larger interdental spaces, bridges and also braces.
Often the interdental spaces are located at the level of the gums, where the roots or the surface of the teeth are sunk. In this case, interdental brushes are especially recommended because they achieve a larger contact surface with the tooth compared to floss and thus clean it mechanically better. They are available in different sizes and materials.
Most of them are twisted through a metal wire. Meanwhile there are also some that are made completely of plastic. Apart from interdental brushes, dental floss is the best way to clean interdental spaces. Unlike the brushes, floss also comes to the surface of the teeth in the case of narrow interdental spaces, or even directly to tooth contacts.
Toothbrushes for braces
Fixed braces make the thorough cleaning of the teeth very difficult. Due to the apparatus, many areas are very difficult to access. Simply brushing with a manual or electric toothbrush is not enough.
Ultrasonic toothbrushes already provide a considerable advantage over mechanical cleaning with other toothbrushes, since the vibration can also spread around the wire and the brackets. But not everybody owns an ultrasonic toothbrush and in general additional tools are strongly recommended. If the teeth cannot be kept free of plaque during orthodontic treatment, irreversible demineralization, so-called “white spots”, often form around the brackets.
These are, so to speak, light-colored impressions or spots on the teeth, which usually only really come to light when the braces are removed. To prevent this, the use of interdental brushes is recommended, as well as dental floss, such as “Superfloss”. This has a reinforced end that can be threaded through the interdental spaces and the wire, and then the plaque can be removed with small movements. Mouth rinse solutions can also be used additionally. A weekly fluoridation of the teeth is also recommended.
