Zentflex Toothbrush evaluation | Teethstars.com

Brushing your tooth with an excessive amount of drive may cause everlasting harm to the important tooth construction. However how a lot drive is an excessive amount of? The Zent flex toothbrush gives an elegantly easy resolution that ensures you all the time brush with precisely the correct stress.

My preliminary impression of the thought behind the Zent Flex toothbrush was, “That’s sensible!”  There are related ideas in electrical toothbrushes that beep at you or flash a crimson mild when the person makes use of an excessive amount of stress, however they don’t truly cease the drive.  We all the time advise sufferers to brush gently with a soft-bristled toothbrush.  In spite of everything, it takes little or no stress to take away dental plaque from the tooth.  However in my expertise, there are some individuals who simply can’t appear to minimize the stress they use.  The distinctive design of the click joint within the Zent Flex toothbrush could also be precisely what they want.

Tooth enamel is the toughest construction within the human physique, a lot more durable than bones.  It’s potential, albeit troublesome, to mechanically abrade (progressively put on away) enamel.  Enamel abrasion is just not our greatest concern with poor brushing method, although.  

There are two severe penalties of an aggressive toothbrushing method: 1) gum recession, and a pair of) root abrasion.

Though poor brushing method is just not the first reason behind gum recession, it’s actually a contributing think about many circumstances.  The gum tissues surrounding the tooth are comparatively delicate, so any inappropriate drive may cause them to again away from that perceived harm.  Gum recession in itself is dangerous as a result of it’s a lack of attachment between the tooth and the underlying jawbone.  Gums which have receded don’t develop again.  Extreme gum recession can require gum grafting surgical procedure to restore the defects.

Within the consideration of poor brushing method, a recession is exceptionally dangerous as a result of it exposes the roots of the tooth, rising the chance for the second consequence of onerous brushing: root abrasion.  Root abrasion is more likely than enamel abrasion as a result of the roots of tooth should not have a protecting enamel coating.  As a substitute, the roots are coated in a skinny layer of cementum, which may be very prone to abrasion.  As soon as the cementum is gone, the underlying dentin (the key element of tooth) is uncovered, resulting in a excessive danger for cavities and tooth sensitivity.  Like gums, cementum and dentin don’t regenerate on their very own.  If extreme abrasion happens, dental restorations may be essential to restore the defects.

The Zent Flex mechanism of “breaking” the joint at 150g of drive is suitable primarily based on scientific analysis concerning the drive required to take away dental plaque versus the drive that damages dentin.  Analysis helps (and it simply is sensible) that rising drive will improve plaque elimination.  That’s the entire level of brushing: to take away the sticky movie of plaque that comprises disease-causing micro organism.  In some unspecified time in the future, although, that rising drive will take away not solely the plaque but additionally the dentin to which it’s caught!

The edge of 150 grams of drive can also be an accepted standardized quantity for Toothbrushing as the suitable quantity of stress.  We see this within the testing protocols that the American Dental Affiliation makes use of in its Relative Dentin Abrasivity (RDA) index.  They use 150g of drive when testing the abrasion potential of assorted sorts of toothpaste.

The explanation dentin is so important to this dialog is that it comprises tiny pores, referred to as tubules, which create a communication between the oral atmosphere and the nerve inside every tooth.  Chemical or mechanical processes that open or widen these tubules will open that communication, that means you may be extra prone to really feel scorching, chilly, and candy sensations within the nerve.  This examine exhibits that utilizing a decrease drive when brushing truly helps to shrink these tiny pores, decreasing sensitivity considerably.

[Side note: While sensitivity is a more common consequence of open dentinal tubules, we also need to worry about cavities.  The open pores in dentin increase the risk for bacterial contamination, and therefore increase the risk for cavities on these exposed root surfaces.]

After utilizing the comb myself, I used to be shocked to study that I brush too onerous!  I’m a dentist!  After all, I think about myself to be somebody with an ideal brushing method.  Throughout my first use of the Zentflex, it was onerous to cease laughing at myself as a result of the click joint broke again and again.  I did really feel, as I brushed, that I may need been lacking areas, which triggered me to pay shut consideration to how totally I used to be overlaying the tooth.

The comb itself is snug and well-constructed.  The bristles really feel soft-to-medium-soft.  (Extra importantly, they felt a lot softer after the click joint broke at 150g of drive.)  As I continued brushing, I seen that I used to be progressively altering my method to maintain the joint from breaking, so I feel this brush carries nice potential for coaching folks within the acceptable quantity of toothbrushing drive.  If that is the one toothbrush you utilize, I imagine that over time you’d develop a brushing method that might not trigger the joint to interrupt.

Conclusion

This toothbrush could be a beautiful software for anybody with delicate tooth, gum recession, root publicity, or just a naturally heavy brushing method.  I like to recommend it for these specific folks as a consequence of its protecting skills and its coaching potential.  It additionally has the benefit of being a lot inexpensive than the typical electrical toothbrushes that promote the identical protecting features.

Dr. Lara Coseo

Dr. Lara Coseo, (DDS, FAGD) is a 2004 graduate of Baylor School of Dentistry in Dallas, Texas. Having practiced normal dentistry for 13 years, Dr. Lara at present serves as an Affiliate Professor at Texas A&M School of Dentistry.