Which is better, a manual or electronic brush? You can do a great job brushing with a manual brush if you are doing everything correctly, and long enough. Electronic brushes, particularly oscillating or sonic brushes have a few added benefits - they are more technique forgiving because the head moves, you need to place the brush correctly and let it do the work. Most electronic brushes will stop working if you use too much pressure, so they are great for the brusher who likes to 'scrub', and reduce tooth and gum damage at receeded areas. Sonic brushes also use sonic action to break up plaque and bacteria. The sonic pulse disrupts the cell wall of the bacteria preventing it from replicating, thereby reducing overall plaque/bacteria. Electronic brushes also have the benefit of massaging the gum tissue. This helps increase circulation in the tissue, which helps your body to better fight any infections that are starting. Most electronic brushes also have a built in timer, many that beep to tell you when to move to the next area of your mouth.
Brush heads of an electric brush need to be changed as frequently as you would change a manual brush, about every three months. We recommend you also replace your toothbrush, toothbrush head following any illness as well so that you are not reintroducing bad bacteria into your system and reinfecting yourself.
If you're using an electric brush, don't be shy about bringing it in with you to your next hygiene appointment so that we can help ensure you are using it correctly. They are all a bit different and we want to make sure you're getting the most of your investment.
Home care is the corner stone to good oral health.