Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02810891 2013-03-20
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Toothbrush
Allison Keating
March 13, 2013
CA 02810891 2013-03-20
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Description
900 Toothbrush Handles
The 900 angle of this brush handle will permit greater access to the lingual
surfaces of teeth that are
hard to clean properly for most individuals.
Background of Invention
The invention relates to a toothbrush.
All dentate individuals need to brush their teeth in order to minimize the
harmful effects of plaque
and calculus build-up in one's mouth. It is crucial to minimize the amount of
plaque and calculus in
one's mouth in order to reduce the bacterial load thus reducing the severity
of gingivitis,
periodontitis, and implantitis. Reducing these oral diseases has been proven
to be important as there
is a strong correlation between oral diseases and heart disease, diabetes,
joint replacement failure,
and preterm birth.
Despite regular toothbrushing, individuals typically spend more time cleaning
the buccal or facial
surfaces of their teeth as these surfaces are most easily reached with a
standard toothbrush. As well,
more time is spent on the exterior areas because it is what other individuals
see. Therefore, often the
lingual and palatal surfaces of teeth are neglected resulting in excessive
plaque and calculus
accumulation.
Toothbrushes are used world-wide to clean teeth in order to promote the health
of both the teeth and
gum structure in the mouth. Many different types of toothbrushes and oral
hygiene aids exist in
order to reach all areas of one's mouth, however continuous improvement in the
types of aids is
required to facilitate one's oral health through effective homecare. Examples
of existing oral health
care aids are as follows:
Proxabrush
End-tuft brush
Sulcabrush: Cdn Patent ¨ 1247311
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CA 02810891 2013-03-20
These listed oral health care aids target different areas of the mouth and of
one's teeth. The
Proxabrush targets the interproximal surfaces of teeth as well as aids in
cleaning under braces wires.
The End-tuft brush is idea for hard-to-reach areas including the facial
surfaces of molars and in
locations where teeth overlap creating too small of a space to be reached by a
standard toothbrush.
The Sulcabrush is perfect for cleaning in furcations of molar teeth as well as
can be used to better
clean around the gum line of lingual and facial surfaces. Despite these tools
there is continual need
for improvement as no two mouths are the same and each mouth cannot be
effectively cleaned using
all of the same tools. Currently, there is no brush that specifically targets
the lingual aspects of all
teeth.
Summary of the Invention
This brush is similar to other brushes in that it is comprised of a plastic
handle with bristles on one
far end of the handle. The bristled end of the brush is bent at a 90 angle to
the handle. The bristles
are angled towards the handle and point parallel to the handle. This 900 bend
occurs on the shaft of
the handle approximately 30 mm from the end. The remaining handle is straight.
The toothbrush of this invention has bristles that are pointing directly
towards the lingual surfaces of
the teeth when the brush handle is held parallel to the ground. This will
ensure a direct application
of the bristles to the lingual tooth surfaces and will ensure that these
difficult areas will be targeted
during one's homecare routine.
The brush can be moved using the currently accepted modified bass brushing
technique by jiggling
the brush at the gingival margin prior to completing a swishing motion away
from the cervical
margin.
Additionally, the brush can be used to access the distal surfaces of teeth.
When a tooth is removed
and a space remains, it is challenging to clean the distal surface of the
tooth in front of the space.
The 90 angle of the brush will permit easy access to these challenging distal
surfaces.
Directly targeting these lingual surfaces and hard-to-reach distal surfaces
and will permit a reduction
in plaque and calculus accumulation thus decreasing their effects and the
severity of bleeding gums,
gingivitis, periodontitis, and even implantitis and therefore greatly decrease
one's oral bacterial load.
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Brief Description of the Drawings
The following descriptions are in reference to the accompanying drawings in
order to clarify the
preferred use of the invention:
Figure 1 shows a top view of the toothbrush of the present invention having a
smaller set of bristles.
Figure 2 shows a side view of the toothbrush in figure 1.
Figure 3 shows a side view of the toothbrush of the present invention having a
full set of bristles.
Figure 4 shows a perspective view of the teeth in one arch showing the lingual
use of the toothbrush
in the area of tooth 31 from figure 1 or figure 3.
Figure 5 shows a cross-section of the teeth in one arch demonstrating the use
of the toothbrush of
the present invention in an alternative use at the distal of tooth 44.
Referring to figures 1 and 2, the toothbrush of the present invention is
denoted by reference 1.
Toothbrush 1 has a flat handle (2.) where the neck of the handle becomes
skinnier prior to the 900
bend (3.).
The handle 2 is of standard toothbrush diameter, approximately llmm. Along the
highest portion of
the handle, closest to the narrowing of the handle to approximately 6mm, is
gripping surface (4.)
with alternating ridges and groves. These ridges and groves extend for
approximately 35mm on the
top, wide surface of the handle. The wide brush handle extends for a total of
105mm. The overall
top and bottom surfaces of both the wide and skinny portions of the handle are
flat with no curves.
The narrower portion of the handle, denoted by reference 5, becomes skinnier
40mm prior to the 90
bend. The narrow handle is approximately 6mm wide. After the bend, there is
30mm until the end
of the brush handle.
Both ends of the handle have a rounded tip.
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The last 8mm of narrow handle, located after the 90 bend, embodies a small
group of bristles.
There are 3 or 4 rows of length of bristles. There are 2 rows wide of
bristles. (Reference 6.) The
bristles extend straight from the brush handle. They project parallel to the
narrow handle prior to
the 90 bend. The bristles will be of 9mm in length as indicated in reference
7.
The toothbrush of the current invention represented in figure 3 is indicated
by reference 8. The wide
portion of the brush handle (9.) extends for 120mm prior to a narrowing
portion. It is 13mm wide.
Located on the highest portion of the handle, closest to the narrowing portion
of the, is gripping
surface (10.) with alternating ridges and groves. These ridges and groves
extend for approximately
30mm on the top, wide surface of the handle. This handle (11.) is slightly
curved in a horizontal "s"
position that fits the hand comfortably. Additionally, the bottom of the brush
is slightly rounded.
The narrowing portion of the brush is 25mm long prior to the 90 bend. The
narrow portion of the
handle is approximately 6mm wide. After the bend, there is 41mm of handle
remaining.
Both ends of the handle have a rounded tip.
The last 26mm of the handle after the 90 bend embodies 9 rows long of
bristles. There are 2 or 3
rows wide of bristles. (reference 12.) The bristles project straight out,
parallel to the narrow portion
of the handle (13.) after the 90 bend. The bristles are approximately 1 Omm
in length.
Brushes indicated by references 1 and 8 can be made out of any form of
plastic, as is the convention
for toothbrushes currently. Alternatively, the handle could be made from metal
or any other
material that would permit a 90 bend in the handle. Bristles used in the
current invention can be
made by standard means. Bristles should be soft, but brushes could also be
made using medium or
hard bristles.
Brushes indicated by references 1 and 8 should be ideally bent at a 90 angle.
However, these
brushes may be bent at any angle ranging from 75 to 110 in order to permit
increased access to the
gingival margin of the lingual and distal tooth surfaces.
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Figure 4 shows the teeth of the lower jaw. The brush is being used to access
the lingual surfaces of
the mandibular anterior teeth. Brush 1 is used to access the gingival margin
area of the anterior
tooth 41. Especially with recession, the root surfaces are difficult to access
because of the amount
of root exposed. The 3 rows of bristles of brush 1 as well as the 900 angle
permit perfect access to
the gingival margin as well as all of the lingual surfaces of the teeth. The
brush can be moved in
numerous ways including the modified bass brushing method which includes a
jiggling followed by
a sweeping motion. As well, brush 1 permits access where there is narrow root
exposure that is
difficult to access with a big, bulky brush.
The brush referenced in figure 3 can also be used on any of the lingual
surfaces. When a standard
brush is not adequate to reach palatal surfaces of teeth, brush 8, with its
full complement of bristles
can be used to brush teeth just as a standard brush would be used to clean the
facial/buccal surfaces.
To clean the distal surfaces of teeth, either brush 1 or brush 8 can be used,
depending on the tooth
size and ease of accessibility. The brush extends over the anterior teeth as
shown in figure 5 to
reach the distal of tooth 45. Because tooth 46 is missing, there is
significant plaque accumulation on
distal surfaces of teeth that is not often removed adequately. The brush 8 has
bristles angled at 90
that will focus on the distal surface of tooth 45 in order to remove the
plaque while cleaning.
Ideally, the brush of the present invention would be used regularly by
individuals who have
difficulty reaching the lingual and palatal surfaces of their teeth. This
suggests that the brush 8, in
figure 3, would be used at a minimum of two times daily for both the upper and
lower teeth. Brush
1 may be used as an oral health care aide to assist in accessing areas of
difficulty on all lingual
surfaces. This includes, but is not limited to, areas of recession, hard-to-
reach areas located by the
tongue or elsewhere, along implant/crown margins, distal tooth surfaces, and
accessing gingival
clefts.
Experience suggests that by diligently using this brush, there can be a
significant reduction in plaque
and calculus accumulation in areas that are often missed when brushing only
with a conventional
brush. By regularly cleaning these areas, one can achieve a reduction in
plaque and therefore less
inflammation and bleeding in the short term as well as a decrease in bone loss
in the future. If one
uses this brush regularly, it should be possible to maintain or improve one's
oral health.
