Table 3.
Summary of responses to "Oral hygiene" and their relationship with plaque score
| Oral hygiene Items | Responses and binarization† | Relationship with plaque score |
| 1. Frequency of brushing (per day) | P = 0.0354 | |
| none | 0 (0) | |
| 1x | 4 (6) | |
| 2x | 22 (34) | |
| 3x | 29 (45) | |
| 4x or more | 10 (15) | |
| 2. Use of tooth paste | ND | |
| Yes | 61 (95) | |
| No | 3 (5) | |
| 3. Approximal cleaning (use of dental floss or interdental brush) | P = 0.0232 | |
| Yes | 39 (60) | |
| No | 26 (40) | |
| 4. Use of mouthwash or other products | NS | |
| Yes | 25 (38) | |
| No | 40 (62) | |
Values are expressed in n (%).
† Responses were grouped into two (as separated by dotted line) and compared with two categories of PCR (≥ 40% vs. < 40%) by Fisher's exact test. P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant.
NS; not significant
ND; not determined