Oral diseases are the most prevalent non-communicable diseases worldwide, affecting 3.5 billion people, with a disproportionate impact on those living in low- and middle-income countries. Current oral health promotion strategies rely heavily on plastic and nylon toothbrushes, which present both environmental and accessibility challenges. In response to the growing need for sustainable and affordable preventive oral health solutions, there has been increasing interest in alternatives to conventional toothbrushes. This scoping review aimed to summarize the global literature on silicone toothbrushes, an underutilized tool in preventive oral care. A systematic search of five databases, supplemented by reference screening, identified ten English-language studies investigating silicone toothbrushes. Findings suggest that silicone toothbrushes are effective in plaque removal, have a lower risk of gingival trauma, are well-suited for specific populations, and perform better in environmental impact assessments.
Plaque removal effectiveness
Dental plaque removal effectiveness was a central focus across most included studies. For example, two studies found that silicone toothbrushes demonstrated comparable plaque removal to plastic and nylon toothbrushes among post-secondary students [and children who brushed their teeth or who had support from parents. U-shaped automatic electric toothbrushes with silicone bristles were not effective at removing plaque compared to conventional and habitual toothbrushing practices. The authors suggest that the optimal hardness of the silicone toothbrushes was 60 Shore A, however, there was no soft tissue damage among all hardness levels. Threaded bristles significantly improved the dental plaque removal of silicone toothbrushes. Moreover, their findings indicate that silicone toothbrushes are equally as effective at removing plaque under both wet and dry brushing conditions.
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