Implant Maintenance: A Clinical Update

Table 4

Implant maintenance summarized.

At-home implant care	Professional hygiene care
Brushing; Soft manual toothbrush; Motorized tooth brush/power brush; Automated/sonic tooth brush; End-tufted brush; Tapered rotary brush	Scaling andcurettage; Plastic instruments; Plastic instruments reinforced with graphite; Gold-plated curettes; Ultrasonic or sonic scaler covered with a plastic sleeve
Interproximal/circumferential cleaning: (i) Floss; Plastic floss; Braided flossing cord; Satin floss; Woven floss; Yarns dental tapes; (ii) Interproximal cleaners; Foam tips; Interproximal brushes with a plastic coated wire; Disposable wooden picks	Polishing; (i) Rubber cup with a nonabrasive polishing paste; Such as aluminum oxide, tin oxide, APF-free prophy paste, and low-abrasive dentifrice; (ii) Air polishing; (Use remains controversial)
Locally applied chemotherapeutics; For example: chlorhexidine digluconate (0.12%), plant alkaloids, or phenolic agents	Locally applied chemotherapeutics; Such as Arestin, Atridox, PerioChip, or Dentomycin
Water irrigation; For example: Hydro Floss	Subgingival irrigation; Antiseptic agents such as Peroxide, Listerine, or Chlorhexidine using a plastic irrigation tip