Comparison of tooth brushing with traditional miswak in maintenance of oral hygiene

ABSTRACT

Background: Chewing sticks were used throughout the ancient times many communities till date. Many people in today’s modern days still have maintained this practice of oral hygiene due to reasons like cost, customs and religious reasons and accessibility. The miswak, obtained from the twigs of the Salvadora persica tree, may be beneficial due to its mechanical cleaning. The aim of the present study was to compare the oral hygiene status and gingival conditions following the use of conventional tooth brushing and miswak over a period 100 days. Materials and methods: The study was conducted in a madrasa in outskirts of Jammu and Kashmir. Out of the total 154 subjects, a total of 148 subjects who were voluntarily willing to participate in the study were selected. Out of these subjects 72 subjects were using miswak (Group I), 76 subjects were using tooth brush and tooth paste (Group II) as an oral hygiene aid. All of these subjects were evaluated for Gingival and Plaque status on 50th and 100th day following oral prophylaxis. Results: Both Group I showed a significant difference (p≤0.05), at 50th and 100th day in their mean plaque scores. The mean gingival scores recorded for subjects using only miswak and those subjects using both miswak as well as tooth brush and tooth paste increased from 50th day to 100th day and showed a statistical difference between the two means in group I. Conclusion: The results of the present study suggest that miswak can be used as an effective adjunct for oral hygiene maintenance along with toothbrush and tooth paste as it is readily available and inexpensive.