(Press-News.org) Research published in the British Dental Journal shows that Brush DJ, an app designed to encourage youngsters to adopt and maintain an effective oral health care routine using evidence-based techniques, is effective in its aims.
Brush DJ was launched on the Apple App Store at the end of 2011 and in 2013 it was accepted into the NHS Choices Health Apps Library. By February 2015 Brush DJ, which is free with no advertisements or in-app purchases, had been downloaded on more than 197,000 devices in 188 countries. It can be used with any type of toothbrush.
The app plays music for two minutes - the optimum time for brushing teeth - taken from a playlist or randomly from the user's own device or cloud. As well as encouraging tooth brushing for two minutes, it also reminds users to spit out after brushing but not to rinse, sets reminders to brush twice a day, use a mouthwash at other non-brushing times of the day, sets alerts for dental appointments and reminders to change toothbrushes once every three months. Fundamentally, it makes brushing teeth fun for youngsters.
The British Dental Journal research was carried out by a team including a general dental practitioner and NHS Innovation Accelerator Fellow from York, a consultant orthodontist from Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust and a lead dental researcher, educator and Foundation Dean of the Peninsula Dental School from Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry.
The research showed that 70 per cent of respondents reported their teeth felt cleaner since using the app and 88 per cent said that Brush DJ had motivated them to brush their teeth for longer. Ninety per cent said they would recommend the app to their friends and family.
The research team concluded that not only had Brush DJ contributed to greater motivation for young people to care for their teeth more effectively, but it also has huge potential as a way to convey important oral health messages and information. Indeed, a recommendation from the study suggests that it would be reasonable to prescribe such an app in the same way in which fluoride toothpastes are currently prescribed in the UK.
Ben Underwood, dentist, app developer, NHS Innovation Accelerator Fellow and Honorary University Fellow at Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, led the study. He said: "Brush DJ showed positive effect across four main themes - motivation, education, compliance and perceived benefits. The results of our study indicate that apps such as Brush DJ are beneficial to users and open the way for further research to extend their use and effectiveness still further."
Professor Elizabeth Kay, Foundation Dean of the Peninsula Dental School from Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, was a co-author on the study. She added: "Caries and other dental health conditions are ultimately preventable, and the great thing about an app such as Brush DJ is that we can show that it has a positive effect for children. Bearing in mind that almost 26,000 children a year are aged between five and nine are admitted to hospital for dental treatment in the UK, for conditions which are on the whole preventable through better understanding and adoption of good oral health routines, the potential for Brush DJ and apps like it to reduce that number is huge. More research based on the findings from this study will help us to develop the app and investigate methods for its more widespread use."
INFORMATION:
Brush DJ can be downloaded free of charge from, Apple, Android and the NHS Choices Health App Library free of charge to all mobile devices. More information is available by visiting http://www.brushdj.com.
The use if a mobile app to motivate evidence-based oral hygiene behaviour
DOI: 10.1038/sj.bdj.2015.660
Electrical and computer engineers at North Carolina State University have developed a new technique for creating less-expensive, low-power embedded systems - the computing devices found in everything from thermostats to automobiles.
"Using our techniques, we've been able to create prototype systems with power converters that have a combination of energy efficiency and low cost that - as far as we've been able to tell - is unmatched by anything currently on the market," says Alex Dean, co-author of a paper on the work and an associate professor of electrical and computer ...
A newly published research study that combines effects of warming temperatures from climate change with stream acidity projects average losses of around 10 percent of stream habitat for coldwater aquatic species for seven national forests in the southern Appalachians - and up to a 20 percent loss of habitat in the Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests in western North Carolina.
Published in the online journal PLOS ONE, the results represent the first regional assessment in the U.S. of aquatic habitat suitability tied to the combined effects of stream temperature and ...
MRI scans and other tools to detect and diagnose dementia are helpful but not definitive - according to new research from the University of East Anglia.
A report published today in The Lancet Neurology evaluates for the first time how well different types of brain imaging tests work to detect Alzheimer's and predict how the disease will progress.
The results show that the accuracy of brain imaging must be improved before it can be rolled out on a scale that could be useful to healthcare providers and patients.
Co-author Prof Chris Fox says that overplaying the current ...
Here's another discovery to bolster the case for medical marijuana: New research in mice suggests that THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, may delay the rejection of incompatible organs. Although more research is necessary to determine if there are benefits to humans, this suggests that THC, or a derivative, might prove to be a useful antirejection therapy, particularly in situations where transplanted organs may not be a perfect match. These findings were published in the September 2015 issue of The Journal of Leukocyte Biology.
"We are excited to demonstrate for ...
A drop of water self-heals a multiphase polymer derived from the genetic code of squid ring teeth, which may someday extend the life of medical implants, fiber-optic cables and other hard to repair in place objects, according to an international team of researchers.
"What's unique about this plastic is the ability to stick itself back together with a drop of water," said Melik Demirel, professor of engineering science and mechanics, Penn State. "There are other materials that are self healing, but not with water."
Demirel and his team looked at the ring teeth of squid ...
A new study examining changes in gun policy in two states finds that handgun purchaser licensing requirements influence suicide rates. Researchers estimate that Connecticut's 1995 law requiring individuals to obtain a permit or license to purchase a handgun after passing a background check was associated with a 15.4 percent reduction in firearm suicide rates, while Missouri's repeal of its handgun purchaser licensing law in 2007 was associated with a 16.1 percent increase in firearm suicide rates.
The study, from researchers with the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy ...
ITHACA, N.Y. - Restoring oyster reefs is not an easy task, but by digging deep and examining centuries-old reefs, marine restoration professionals may stand a better chance at bringing oysters back, said a new Cornell University and Paleontological Research Institution (PRI) study published in the August issue of the Journal of Shellfish Research.
Stephen R. Durham, a Cornell doctoral student in the field of earth and atmospheric sciences, with Gregory P. Dietl, curator of Cenozoic invertebrates at the Cornell-affiliated PRI and a Cornell adjunct assistant professor of ...
Washington, DC, September 1, 2015 - A simplified handwashing routine, with five steps instead of seven, helps to reduce sickness-related absenteeism for students with mild intellectual disability (MID), according to a study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).
The study was conducted in two special education schools in Hong Kong. Researchers from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University developed a 12-week handwashing intervention ...
September 1, 2015 - For women undergoing hysterectomy, removal of "hanging" abdominal fat and skin--a cosmetic procedure called panniculectomy--can be performed at the same surgery without increasing the risk of complications, reports a study in the September issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).
"This is among the best evidence to date regarding 30-day risk profiles, and the data suggests that the complication rates are comparable for patients undergoing combined hysterectomy ...
(Boston)--A gene linked in previous research, appears to predict more severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms as well as a thinner cortex in regions of the brain critical for regulating strong emotions and coping with stressful experiences. This study is believed to be the first to show that the spindle and kinetochore-associated complex subunit 2 (SKA2) gene may play a role in the development of PTSD.
Led by researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), the National Center for PTSD and the Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress ...
