Comparison of bacterial adhesion to orthodontic elastomeric ligatures: Coated versus uncoated

TP Orthodontics recently developed a new, coated, low-friction elastomeric ligature, “Super Slick™ Ties.” The objective of the current study was to compare in vivo, coated and uncoated elastomeric ligatures relative to the bacterial adhesion of normal oral flora found in dental plaque.; Twenty adolescent patients, 10 girls and 10 boys, participated in the split-mouth study, each serving as their own control. Maxillary and mandibular lateral incisors and the most distal premolars within each arch were selected as the test sites. Elastomerics were removed at various intervals, plated onto growth medium, incubated, and colony forming units (CFU) counted. Individual ligatures were also photographed under magnification.; The 2-way ANOVA showed no interaction between gender and elastomeric ligatures. The coated and uncoated elastomeric ligatures were also compared at each of the four test sites using the 2-way ANOVA. The coated ligatures had an increased visible amount of plaque and correlated higher count of CFU.; The results clearly displayed an increase in bacterial adherence on the coated ligatures. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)...