Effect of three different motivational techniques on oral hygiene and gingival health of patients undergoing multibracketed orthodontics

Abstract

Objective: To compare the effectiveness of three different motivational techniques for maintaining good oral hygiene during fixed appliance orthodontic treatment. Materials and Methods: A total of 62 adolescents in the age range of 12-18 years, requiring fixed orthodontic treatment were evaluated for the efficacy of three different motivational techniques, ie, conventional plaque control measures (group I), chair side motivational tests with conventional plaque control measures (group II), and phase contrast microscopy with conventional plaque control measures (group III), in improving oral hygiene and gingival health over a period of 6 months. Results: A gradual decline in mean plaque scores in group III was found, ie, from 1.13 ± 0.42 at baseline to 0.64 ± 0.39 at 6 months (P