Enjoy good oral health: Learn how to use interdental brushes the right way

Why do we need toothbrushing?

Dental diseases are caused by dental plaque – a film that forms on tooth surfaces and contains millions of bacteria. To maintain good dental health, we need to disturb this plaque film and clean the tooth surfaces daily. That’s why daily toothbrushing is a must.

What is interdental cleaning?

Compared to the front and back surfaces of the teeth, the areas between the teeth need more attention as they provide a protective environment for the bacteria to live in, multiply and grow into large colonies. So cleaning between the teeth is more important. That’s where you need interdental brushes – in addition to the regular toothbrushes.

Regular toothbrushes clean the front and backside of the teeth, whereas interdental brushes clean the areas between the teeth – called the interdental spaces.

How to choose an interdental brush?

Interdental spaces occur in different sizes – some are wide, some are narrow, and some have tight contacts. These spaces may vary in size in the same mouth. Hence there is a need to have different sized interdental brushes to cover all types of interdental spaces.

There is no ‘one size fits all.’

If you clean a wide area with a narrow brush, it can be too small and ineffective in cleaning. If the brush is too wide, it won’t fit, and forcing it in may damage the brush and the gums.

So you may need a thicker interdental brush for the wide spaces (WS proxa) between the back teeth and a thinner interdental brush in the narrow spaces (NS proxa).

Also, you may need a very thin floss (younifloss) for the tight contacts, commonly seen between the front teeth.

Thus, a single person may need more than one sized interdental brush. Your dentist is the right person to recommend you the correct size brush for a particular interdental space.

Benefits:

1. Prevents dental diseases by removing the plaque between the teeth
2. Helps in the management of dentinal hypersensitivity.
3. Increases the life of restorations by improving the tissue health around them.

How to use a proxa brush?

Insert Thermoseal proxa brush gently between your teeth. Do not try to force the brush through the space to take it to the other side – it will damage the brush as well as your gums.

You have to insert the brush gently in and then back and forth in each space. If you can not, choose a smaller (narrow space) size brush – NS proxa brush. Your dentist’s recommendation is essential here.

You may need a floss (or younifloss) in tight contacts and not a proxa brush.

Recommendations & precautions:

1. Use the bendable head of proxabrush to properly align with your interdental space.
2. Do not try to force it through the space. It will damage the brush and your gums.
3. Watch the following videos for a better understanding of how to use proxabrushes.

Video demonstration:

Watch the video below to understand the right way of using a proxabrush: