Abstract
The purpose of this study was to toothbrushing force and toothbrushing pressure are insufficient, the toothbrushing effect is unsatisfactory. However, when too strong, damage can be caused to teeth and periodontal tissue. Distinction needs to be made by defining that toothbrushing force which is a force applied overall to the brush head, and toothbrushing pressure which is pressure per unit area where the toothbrush touches the tooth directly, we calculated toothbrushing pressure from toothbrushing force. The subjects of research were 20 children aged between four and six, and 20 adults aged between 23 and 42, with no abnormality in the occlusion and periodontal tissue. By using a manual toothbrush and three types of electric toothbrush, a front and back movement type, a rolling type and a special movement type, toothbrushing force and toothbrushing pressure were measured. 1) With toothbrushing force, the manual showed the highest value for both adults and children, followed by the front and back movement type and the rolling type showed the lowest value. Meanwhile, in contrast to brushing force, the value was highest with the special movement type, followed by the front and back type, the rolling type and the manual toothbrush were close to each other. 2) Compared to adults, toothbrushing force and toothbrushing pressure were relatively low with children. 3) The fact that toothbrushing pressure can be high even when toothbrushing force is weak, indicates that in future it will be necessary to make a study by checking both toothbrushing force and toothbrushing pressure.
