I am trying to locate this study (including the name of the university
that the researchers were associated with): A new study found that
after 6 months of twice daily use, patients brushing with silica
toothpaste had 44 percent less plaque and tartar than patients using
toothpastes without the ingredient.

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Request for Question Clarification by bobbie7-ga on 04 May 2004 09:55 PDT

Please take a look at the following excerpts.

?The objective of this six-month, placebo-controlled, double-blind
clinical study, conducted in harmony with American Dental Association
guidelines, was to provide an assessment of the effectiveness of a new
dentifrice formulation of Colgate Total Toothpaste containing a
special grade of silica (Colgate Total Plus Whitening Toothpaste), vs.
Colgate Total Fresh Stripe Toothpaste as a control, and a placebo
dentifrice without triclosan and the copolymer, for the control of
supragingival dental plaque and gingivitis.?

?At the six-month examination, the magnitude of these differences
exceeded 23.0% for all four parameters measured in the Colgate Total
Plus Whitening Toothpaste group (29.9% for Plaque Index, 59.2% for
Plaque Severity Index, 23.2% for Gingival Index, and 75.1% for
Gingivitis Severity Index). Also, at the six-month examination, the
magnitude of these differences exceeded 21.0% for each of the four
parameters measured in the Colgate Total Fresh Stripe Toothpaste group
(27.9% for Plaque Index, 54.9% for Plaque Severity Index, 21.4% for
Gingival Index and 69.2% for Gingivitis Severity Index). The results
of this six-month clinical study support the conclusion that Colgate
Total Plus Whitening Toothpaste and Colgate Total Fresh Stripe
Toothpaste provided a statistically significant, clinically relevant
level of efficacy for the control of supragingival plaque and
gingivitis, in accordance with the criteria provided by current
American Dental Association guidelines.?

If this is the study you have in mind I can provide you with a link to
the abstract and give you the name of the university that the
researchers were associated with it.

Thanks,
Bobbie7

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Clarification of Question by writerml-ga on 04 May 2004 10:41 PDT

I don't think that's the study -- it doesn't have the 44% figure in it
(although I admit I don't know quite how to read statistics like
these)

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Clarification of Question by writerml-ga on 04 May 2004 12:40 PDT

It is possible that is the study, but I don't see where the 44% figure comes from.

I believe that Bobbie7 has correctly identified the study in question. 

Writerml, you may have read about the study in an article such as this:

"ATTACK PLAQUE ? try using a toothpaste with silica.  A new study
found that after 6 months of twice-daily use, patients brushing with
silica toothpaste had 44 percent less plaque and tartar than patients
using pastes without the ingredient.  Men?s Health 7/02."
http://home.earthlink.net/~candace_ball/healtharticles/RPE06-03.htm

For Men's Health to describe the study as "new" in July '02, it would
have had to have been published relatively close to that date.

The study that Bobbie7 cites was published in early 2002 and concerns
the effects on plaque of six months of twice-daily use of silica
toothpaste.  It is highly unlikely that there exists another study on
exactly the same subject, using exactly the same methodology, and
published at exactly the same time.

Hi Writerml,

Without reading the actual study, it's hard to guess the place of the
"44 percent." It's possible that the figure comes from a related study
of the toothpaste by some of the same authors in the same journal
issue.

J Clin Dent. 2002;13(2):86-90
Singh S, Mankodi S, Chaknis P, Petrone ME, DeVizio W, Volpe AR, Proskin HM.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=11695213

J Clin Dent. 2002;13(2):59-64.
Allen DR, Battista GW, Petrone DM, Petrone ME, Chaknis P, DeVizio W, Volpe AR.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=11695207