Toothbrushes have come a long way since the Chinese chewing sticks used in 1600 AD and the arctic swine bristle toothbrushes manufactured in 19th century England. Today, few people understand the progress of oral hygiene better than Dr. Gerry Uswak and Dr. Kunio Komiyama, the University of Saskatchewan researchers developing a titanium and solar-powered toothbrush.
The new appliance would not require toothpaste, but it would need about as much light as a solar calculator, and would theoretically work better than an ordinary toothbrush.
Backed by the Japanese company Shiken Co. Ltd., Dr. Komiyama’s earlier research showed that titanium dioxide breaks down bacteria that cause plaque. In a research project done at the U of S by other researchers at the College of Dentistry, the titanium dioxide core toothbrush seemed to reduce dental plaque significantly more than a standard toothbrush, but that study did not include solar power. The new study will bring the earlier toothbrush a technological notch higher by introducing a solar panel to the end of the brush.
Dr. Uswak says the basic premise behind the technology is that solar power creates an electrical charge, and when in comes in contact with saliva, a wet medium, it releases electrons; those electrons act at disrupting the cell wall of the bacteria, which kills the bacteria. The chemical reaction also disrupts organic acids in the mouth.
Uswak says regular brushing scrapes away the plaque, and the use of toothpaste is primarily to deliver fluoride, which keeps teeth healthy. He says they wanted to develop a product that would kill plaque without the use of toothpaste.
The SOLADEY-J3X toothbrush, which looks like an ordinary brush with bristles, differs only in the way that it uses light energy to produce a chemical reaction in the mouth. Uswak says the power from the solar panel proved more effective at killing and disrupting the bacteria than the chemical reaction that occurred just with a titanium rod brush.
“The basic science shows there is validity to the use of solar semi-conductors in destroying plaque,” he says.
The technology targets only the cell walls of the bacteria, says Uswak, so harmful effects are unlikely. Further studies will investigate whether drawbacks do exist.
The U of S scientists presented their research at the FDI World Dental Federation’s annual conference in Dubai last month. Their poster describing their research won first place out of 170 entries in the poster competition.
Uswak says the next step is proving whether the technology is useful on human patients, ensuring the basic science is transferable to informal situations. Current tests on the SOLADEY-J3X toothbrush will determine the relative benefits of the new technology on real subjects.
The trial period involves two groups of 60 teenagers who will brush for four weeks using the SOLADEY-J3X, four weeks with their regular toothbrush, and four weeks with a placebo brush. The researchers will measure the amount of plaque build-up, as well as bleeding and inflammation around six pre-selected teeth.
If the tests prove successful, the new toothbrush could be out slightly more than a year from the trial’s completion, although Uswak suspects a larger study would be required before the company could market the product in Canada.
“It may find a niche market, I don’t know whether it will take on widespread acceptance by patients,” he says. “The Japanese market may be completely different from the North American market.”
Suppliers are already selling older solar panel Soladey models in Europe, Japan, and the US. According to Uswak, the tests at the U of S are funded by the Japanese company because the company wanted tests undertaken by North American researchers.
The solar toothbrush comes 50 years since the first electric toothbrush was invented in Switzerland, and only 70 years after the majority of people in Europe and North America began brushing their teeth after soldiers brought the habit home after World War II.
