RESUMEN
AIMS: This study was aimed to assess the efficacy of wet and dry brushing on cleaning outcome of tooth surfaces. METHODS: Forty-three children aged 10-12 years were randomly selected and instructed for this brushing project. Each case served as self-control. Each patient was requested to brush through one of the wet/dry techniques for 1 week and other technique on the 2nd week. Samples had a washout step using pumice prophylaxis prior to each brushing week. Tooth Cleanliness Index was used to measure the plaque removal level. Two uniform Oral-B toothbrushes were used one for each week through the Modified Stillman technique. Mann-Whitney test was employed along with the Wilcoxon signed-rank test to analyze the data. RESULTS: The level of brushing efficacy was slightly higher in males with no statistically significant difference between sexes. Remaining plaque measured was higher in wet group with significant difference (7.3 ± 1.7 for dry brushing and 7.6 ± 2.6 for wet brushing) (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Dry and wet brushing did not show a significant difference in their capacity to remove plaque indicating that dry brushing could be considered as an acceptable brushing technique.