Anatomy of the Toothbrush

(1)

The purpose of a toothbrush is to remove and prevent plaque, remove food and stains, and stimulate the gums. A basic manual toothbrush consists of a head with bristles, shank, and handle.

There are four basic shapes of toothbrush handles.

• Straight

• Angled

• Offset

• Angled offset

There are also different types of toothbrush profiles.

• concave

• convex

• multilevel

• flat

The concave profile has shorter bristles in the middle which helps improve cleaning of facial surfaces. Convex has longer bristles in the middle which cleans the lingual surfaces. Multilevel bristles are effective in cleaning between the teeth. The flat profile consists of bristles that are the same length. Toothbrush bristles could be nylon or natural. Nylon bristles are considered better than natural bristles because they don’t split and clean more easily. Customers can choose different handles, toothbrush profiles, and bristles that best fit their desired outcome.

References

(1) Harris, Norman, Frankli Garcia-Godoy, and Christine Nielsen Nathe. Primary Preventive Dentistry. New Jersey: Pearson, 2009. Print.