Oral Hygiene Reminders in Orthodontic Patients

July 31, 2019 updated by: Kirti Saxena, Mahsa University

Influence of WhatsApp and Electronic Mail Reminders on Oral Hygiene Compliance of Orthodontic Patients Using Planimetry

Objective: To determine the effect of WhatsApp and Email reminders on oral hygiene compliance of orthodontic patients.

Methods: A Randomized, parallel group, double blinded study was conducted on 54 patients undergoing orthodontic treatment at MAHSA University. They were randomized to 3 groups, namely WhatsApp (W) group, Email (E) group and Control (C) group with 18 subjects in each group. Group (W) and Group (E) received oral health messages once a week through WhatsApp and E-mail reminders respectively, while Group (C) did not receive any reminders. Plaque was measured at baseline (T0), after 4 weeks (T1), and after 8 weeks (T2). For each subject, two intraoral photographs were taken after application of plaque disclosing agent; and the area covered by plaque was measured on 12, 13, 43, 22, 23 and 33 teeth by planimetry.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Fifty-four patients undergoing orthodontic treatment were recruited from the dental clinic of MAHSA University between Jan 2018 to April 2018. Voluntary written informed consent was obtained from all the subjects before the start of the study. They were randomly assigned into 3 groups namely WhatsApp (W) group, Email (E) group and Control (C) group with 18 subjects in each group. Oral hygiene messages through WhatsApp and Email were sent once a week for 8 weeks.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

54

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Malaysia
    • Selangor
      • Jenjarum, Selangor, Malaysia, 42610
        • MAHSA UNivesity

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

15 years and older (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT, CHILD)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients having fixed maxillary and mandibular orthodontic appliances with 0.022 AO conventional metal brackets,
  • Aged ≥ 15 years,
  • Undergone 3 months of orthodontic treatment,
  • No significant medical or dental history
  • Have access to cellular telephone and are online daily

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients undergoing single arch treatment
  • Missing maxillary lateral incisor, maxillary canine and mandibular canine
  • Patients' orthodontic treatment duration < 3 months and > 4 months.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
  • Allocation: RANDOMIZED
  • Interventional Model: PARALLEL
  • Masking: TRIPLE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: WhatsApp
WhatsApp reminders
Behavioral: WhatsApp reminder

The WhatsApp group received oral health messages once a week for four weeks (totaling 4 messages) as a reminder to practice good oral hygiene

The reminder included an image reminding them to maintain their oral hygiene.

Other Names:
  • Reminders
EXPERIMENTAL: Email
Email reminders
Behavioral: Email reminder

The Email group received oral health messages once a week for four weeks (totaling 4 messages) as a reminder to practice good oral hygiene

The reminder included an image reminding them to maintain their oral hygiene.

Other Names:
  • Reminder
OTHER: Control
No reminder
Behavioral: Control
No messages sent.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in plaque from baseline to 4 weeks
Time Frame: baseline (T0) to end of 4 weeks (T1)

Plaque disclosing solution was applied to the pre-selected teeth (12,13,43, 22, 23, 33) followed by measurement of plaque using planimetry. All photographs were taken using a Canon Electro-Optical System (EOS) 550D (camera specifications). Plaque was analyzed using Image J software. Change in plaque score is assessed from baseline to 4 weeks in all the three groups.

In the photo, region of interest targeted by the study was manually outlined using "Polygon selection tool", the total pixel present in this region is calculated by tracing tool. The pixel of the plaque area is determined by adjusting the color threshold to desirable range of value. The plaque sore was calculated in the form of percent covering tooth structure and the value of plaque on each tooth was determined and mean plaque was calculated.
baseline (T0) to end of 4 weeks (T1)
Change in plaque from baseline to 8 weeks
Time Frame: Baseline (T0) to end of 8 weeks (T2)

Plaque disclosing solution was applied to the pre-selected teeth (12,13,43, 22, 23, 33) followed by measurement of plaque using planimetry. All photographs were taken using a Canon EOS 550D (camera specifications). Plaque was analyzed using Image J software. Change in plaque score is assessed from baseline to 8 weeks in all the three groups.

In the photo, region of interest targeted by the study was manually outlined using "Polygon selection tool", the total pixel present in this region is calculated by tracing tool. The pixel of the plaque area is determined by adjusting the color threshold to desirable range of value. The plaque sore was calculated in the form of percent covering tooth structure and the value of plaque on each tooth was determined and mean plaque was calculated.
Baseline (T0) to end of 8 weeks (T2)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Mahsa University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Kirti Saxena, MDS, Mahsa University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ACTUAL)

January 2, 2018

Primary Completion (ACTUAL)

April 29, 2018

Study Completion (ACTUAL)

July 30, 2018

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 28, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 31, 2019

First Posted (ACTUAL)

August 1, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

August 1, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 31, 2019

Last Verified

July 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • RMC/EC23/2017

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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