Metal Mouth Message Board

What type of toothbrush do you use to clean your braces? Some people stick with regular manual toothbrushes, while others opt for electronic ones. Is one type better or more effective in cleaning your braces than the other? Let's discuss this here.

Personally....I used a Sonicare toothbrush before getting braces and continued using it while I had braces. I brushed after every meal and my dentist always said I had very clean teeth and suffered no decay in the 3 years I had brackets on my teeth.

I have been in braces now for 4 weeks and I have been using the electric/rechargable Oral B Vitality that my orthodontist gave me on brace day. I used to use the battery powered Crest spin brush but now that I have gotten used to the little circle head on my Oral B, I love it. The little circle brush head fits perfectly over each bracket and using it at an angle on the tops and bottoms of the brackets is not a problem either. There is a 2 minute timer on it and it lets me know when I brushed for 2 minutes.
I guess the only downside to the toothbrush is that with such a small brush area I can only use a pea size drop of toothpaste but I guess that is all that is really needed. I have my first adjustment tomorrow so I'll find out if I've been doing a good job brushing.

I use a rechargable Sonicare in the mornings when i wake up and at night before bed, while im at work if i feel i need to brush i use a regular toothbrush, but overall i love my sonicare

right now im using a toothbrush for toodlers due to oral surgery lol otherwise i use a combo of a manual and an electric

I use both! My ortho gave me a sonicare flexcare toothbrush at my banding appointment. I usually use it at night and sometimes in the morning depending on my mood. I also floss in the evening as well. I just had my 6 month evaluation last week at my adjustment and got an A for brushing!

B

I'm probably one of the few that prefer manual toothbrushes. They just work a little better for me. Maybe I haven't found the right electric one yet

Manual toothbrush, soft bristles -- don't care what shape really... I change my toothbrush at least once a month, so I just get whatever I can afford.

i use a oral b vitality electronic recharable toothbrush for the most part. I love it, it makes my mouth feel so clean afterwards. When i'm travelling and stuff i bring along a travel toothbrush but meant specifically for braces.!! I find the electric toothbrush works really awesome and does a good job! the travel toothbrush does a good job as well, but for obvious reasons the electronic toothbrush works betterz

I love using my sonicare tooth brush each time i brush. i highly recommend it!

I use oral B ortho toothbrush with Oral B Cross action electric toothbrush. Its a good combination.

Braced on 28/2/2008...

I use an Oral B Cross Action (Battery powered) toothbrush after every meal and my ortho cut / proxy at nights when I want a 'deep clean'.

Rechargable Sonicare in the mornings and nights. At work I just use a Colgate soft brush. When Im bored, I may use the christmas tree pick. It definately feels good to just pick away at your teeth while watching a movie

I've been in braces for over a year and I have been using just a manual toothbrush. Does anyone know what is the best electric for reaching back teeth/wisdom teeth? I am having a hard time reaching them with just the manual and my ortho will not put brackets on my wisdom teeth to move them up. I told him that they are hard to reach and don't get brushed very well. He says that they will move up on their own without brackets on them b/c he says that all teeth are connected (and i really didn't understand). Please help!

I had already planned on buying a nice electric toothbrush after using other cheapy battery/rechargeable ones like Crest Spin Brush Pro and not being very satisfied. At the suggestion of my hygienist, I bought a new Sonicare at Costco (2 handles for basically the price of 1) and have continued using it since. I have to say that I love my Sonicare! I gave the other handle to my b/f, and he loves his, too.

--Just as a note, if you plan on buying a new Sonicare, don't bother getting the "sanitizer". Consumer Reports did a test to see how effective it was, and found that it's basically as good as running your brush head under hot water for a few seconds. It also seemed to dry my brush out quicker...Probably a ploy to get you to buy more sooner! Lol.--

hello everybody! I'm a newbie.

I have had my braces on for... 17 hours!

But I've had my bands on for about seven weeks, I think.

I just brushed my teeth for the first time with my manual soft-bristled ortho brush that I got from my orthodontist, and it worked surprisingly well. Especially after eating pasta for dinner. I have criss-crossed wires on either side of my mouth to pull back my canines/eye teeth/fangs... I'd number them, but I haven't learned ortho numbers yet! I'm so new to the lingo! Anyway those things are like suspension cables and stuff just loves to get stuck there.

I don't know if a spin brush would be better, but I really want a sonicare.

Also, based on the 6 months I've already spent sitting and waiting in my orthodontists office at Ohio State University (for spacers, bands, and a lower lingual holding arch with a similar appliance on the roof of my mouth, which I don't know the name of) I've heard many an orthodontist recommend to many mothers of teenage boys to buy a timed Crest spin brush or similar product, just so they spend enough time brushing, which teenage boys never do...