Abstract:
The present invention relates to a dental cleaning aid. The aid includes a threader (or leader) including a monofilament. A follower is provided for following the threader and the follower is at least in part wider than the monofilament. Preferably, the aid includes a loop or fold fastening arrangement by which the threader and follower are fastened together. In one embodiment, the arrangement includes a fold or loop of the follower engaged with a fold or loop of the threader.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to a dental cleaning aid and a method for forming a dental cleaning aid. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that the prior art forms part of the common general knowledge. 
         [0003]    Dental floss is a bundle of thin nylon filaments or a plastic (teflon or polyethylene) ribbon used to remove food and dental plaque from teeth. The floss is gently inserted between the teeth and scraped along the teeth sides, especially close to the gums. 
         [0004]    A dental implant is an artificial tooth root replacement and is used in prosthetic dentistry to support restorations that resemble a tooth or group of teeth. A common type of implant includes posts embedded in a patient&#39;s jaw bone. A bridge bearing artificial teeth is then supported by the posts. The gaps between the posts, known in the art as interproximal spaces, can be relatively large when compared with the spacing between teeth, and prone to accumulate food particles, debris, and plaque. 
         [0005]    The main reason for dental prosthesis failure is poor oral hygiene. Plaque and calculus are irritants which lead to gum infection. Gingivitis (gum infection) and periodontitis (bone infection) can develop around implants as well as around natural teeth, leading to implant loss as well as tooth loss. In implants this is referred to as peri-mucositis and peri-implantitis. Poor oral hygiene can cause periodontitis as well as decay around natural teeth which support bridges. Decay may lead to the loss of a tooth supporting the bridge. 
         [0006]    Dental implants and dental bridges are expensive. Whilst it is important to clean dental implants to ensure that they do not fail, narrow dental floss is not well suited to cleaning the wide gaps between the posts. U.S. Pat. No. 5,320,117 discloses a dental cleaning aid having a comparatively wide strip of cleaning material. The strip defines a narrow threader for initially inserting into gaps and a wide follower which can be reciprocated in the gaps during cleaning. In practice, the material threader may not be resilient enough or be too bulky to be pushed through tight or small inter-dental spaces. 
         [0007]    Embodiments of the invention provide a dental cleaning aid with improved threading capabilities. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0008]    According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dental cleaning aid including:
       a threader (or leader) including a monofilament; and   a follower for following the threader and being at least in part wider than the monofilament, the follower including a folded and twisted length of material.       
 
         [0011]    The dental cleaning aid may include a loop or fold fastening arrangement by which the threader and follower are fastened relative to each other. 
         [0012]    A leading portion of the threader may be fine to facilitate threading though gaps whereas a trailing portion of the follower may be wide to facilitate cleaning in the gaps. 
         [0013]    The threader may define a loop through which the follower passes. Preferably, the monofilament is a single strand of nylon or other polymeric material fastened relative to itself to form the loop. Alternatively, the threader is injection molded from thermoplastic material as a single piece. The leading portion of the threader consisting of the doubled over monofilament is comparatively narrow and resistant to bending to facilitate threading through gaps. 
         [0014]    The follower may be resiliently stretchable. The follower may be able to be stretched to about 1.4 times its resting length. The follower may be able to be stretched to be of comparable width as a leading portion of the threader. The material may be a multi-strand nylon yarn. 
         [0015]    The nylon yarn may be texturized nylon 6.0 or 6.6 yarn. The nylon yarn may consist of six plies of a 300 denier (333 dtex) texturized nylon yarn. The yarn may have 68 filaments per ply. The final strand may be 1800 denier (2000 dtex) with a filament count of 408. 
         [0016]    The follower material may be a soft gauze-like material. The material may be non-woven or woven, including cotton, viscose wood pulp or polymeric fiber. The material may be moisture-absorbent and impregnated with flavored particles or an antibacterial agent. 
         [0017]    According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dental cleaning aid including:
       a threader; and   a follower for following the threader and including a folded and twisted length of material.       
 
         [0020]    According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for forming a dental cleaning aid, the method involving the step of fastening a threader, including a monofilament, relative to a follower being at least in part wider than the monofilament, the fastening involving twisting the follower to contain the threader within the follower. 
         [0021]    The method may further include the step of applying to the follower one or more of a wax, flavorants, colourants, and an antibacterial agent. 
         [0022]    The step of fastening may involve fastening the threader to itself to form a loop through which the follower passes. 
         [0023]    According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for forming a dental cleaning aid, the method involving the step of twisting a follower to contain a threader within the follower. 
         [0024]    The method may further include the step of applying to the follower one or more of a wax, flavorants, colourants, and an antibacterial agent. 
         [0025]    The method may further include the step of fastening the threader to itself to form a loop through which the follower passes. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0026]    Preferred features, embodiments and variations of the invention may be discerned from the following Detailed Description which provides sufficient information for those skilled in the art to perform the invention. The Detailed Description is not to be regarded as limiting the scope of the preceding Summary of the Invention in any way. The Detailed Description will make reference to a number of drawings as follows: 
           [0027]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of a dental cleaning aid in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0029]      FIG. 3  is a close up view of a loop fastening arrangement of the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0030]      FIG. 4  shows a threader of the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 1  being threaded through a gap of a dental prosthesis; and 
           [0031]      FIG. 5  shows a dental prosthesis being cleaned with a follower of the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0032]      FIG. 6  is a plan view of a dental cleaning aid in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0033]      FIG. 7  is a plan view of the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 6  with a stretched follower; and 
           [0034]      FIG. 8  shows a dental bridge being cleaned with the dental cleaning aid of  FIG. 6 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0035]    According to an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a disposable dental cleaning aid  2  as shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3 . The dental cleaning aid  2  is suitable for cleaning a dental prosthesis  4  as shown in  FIGS. 4 and 5 , or for cleaning any wide inter-dental spaces which may be between natural teeth, crowns, bridges or implants. 
         [0036]    Turning to  FIG. 1 , the aid  2  includes a threader (or leader)  6  formed from a monofilament and a cleaning follower  8  for following the threader  6 . The leading portion  10  of the threader  6  is narrow to facilitate threading though gaps of the prosthesis  4  whereas the trailing portion  12  of the follower  8  is wide to facilitate cleaning in the gaps. As can best be seen in  FIG. 3 , the dental cleaning aid  2  includes a loop or fold fastening arrangement by which the threader  6  and follower  8  are fastened together. The aid  2  will be described in detail below. 
         [0037]    With reference to  FIG. 3 , the threader  6  defines a loop  14  or fold through which the follower  8  passes. The monofilament forming the threader  6  is a single strand of nylon or other polymeric material fastened relative to itself to form the loop  14  behind the leading portion  10 . The leading portion  10  of the threader  6  consisting of the folded monofilament is comparatively narrow and resistant to bending to facilitate threading through gaps to be cleaned. 
         [0038]    The follower  8  defines a loop or fold  16  through which the threader  6  passes. The follower  8  is formed from a single strip or ribbon of material fastened relative to itself to form the loop  16 . A number of spot welds  18  fastens the strip of material relative to itself. The follower material is gauze formed from soft non-woven fabric and is well adapted to engaging with food, debris or plaque owing to its inherently abrasive and absorbent characteristics. The gauze is moisture-absorbent and can be impregnated with flavored particles or an antibacterial agent. The follower  8  defines a tapered portion  20  proximal to the threader  6  to facilitate insertion of the follower  8  into a gap to be cleaned. 
         [0039]    Turing to  FIG. 4 , the dental prosthesis  4  includes posts  20  embedded in a patient&#39;s lower jaw bone  22 . A bridge  24  bearing artificial teeth  26  is supported by the posts  20 , and a wide gap  28  to be cleaned is defined between the posts  20 . During cleaning, the leading portion  10  of the threader  6  can be readily threaded though the wide gap  28  of the dental prosthesis  4 . 
         [0040]    Turing to  FIG. 5 , the follower  8  follows the threader  6  into the gap  28  between the posts  20  and is reciprocated to clean the gap  28 . In practice, optimal cleaning would involve reciprocating the follower  8  against all surfaces forming the gap  28 , including both posts  20  respectively. Advantageously, the aid  2  enables the patient to properly clean the dental prosthesis  4  without requiring the attendance of a dental professional. 
         [0041]    A method for forming the dental cleaning aid  2  is now described. The method involves the step of fastening the threader  6  to the follower  8  using a loop or fold fastening arrangement. The loop or fold fastening arrangement is formed by fastening loops or folds of the threader  6  and follower  8  together as described below. 
         [0042]    The method involves initially passing the follower  8  through the loop  14  of the threader  6 . In turn, the follower  8  is fastened to itself to form another loop  16  through which the threader  6  passes. The follower  8  is fastened to itself by spot welding the follower  8 . This method is simplistic and forms an effective joint between the threader  6  and follower  8 . 
         [0043]    The method may further involve the step of impregnating the follower  8  with flavored particles or an antibacterial agent. 
         [0044]    According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a disposable dental cleaning aid  50  as shown in  FIGS. 6 to 8 . Like reference numerals refer to like features previously described. 
         [0045]    The cleaning aid  50  includes a follower  52  which is engaged with the threader  6  using a loop or fold fastening arrangement. The follower  52  consists of a folded and twisted length of nylon material  54 . The follower  52  is resiliently stretchable, and can be stretched from its resting length shown in  FIG. 6  to about 1.4 times its resting length as shown in  FIG. 7 . As can best be seen in  FIG. 7 , the follower  52  can be stretched to be of comparable width as the leading portion  10  of the threader  6 . Fastening of the follower  52  and loop  14  is achieved without gluing, welding knotting, crimping or like joining of the folded follower to itself. 
         [0046]    The nylon material  54  is a multi-strand nylon yarn, namely texturized nylon 6.0 or 6.6 yarn. The nylon yarn consists of six plies of a 300 denier (333 dtex) texturized nylon yarn. The yarn may have 68 filaments per ply. The final strand may be 1800 denier (2000 dtex) with a filament count of 408. 
         [0047]    Turning to  FIG. 8 , the threader  6  can be initially fed between a tooth bridge  56  and gum  58 . The follower  52  is stretched when passing between the bridge  56  and gum  58 , and can be moved laterally to clean beneath the bridge  56 . 
         [0048]    When forming the dental cleaning aid  50 , the threader  6  and follower  52  are fastened together. The fastening involves folding the follower  52  to receive a loop  14  of the threader  6 . The follower  52  is then twisted to contain the loop  14  within the follower  52 . The twisted follower  52  may be coated with a microcrystalline wax, flavorants, colourants, or an antibacterial agent. 
         [0049]    A person skilled in the art will appreciate that many embodiments and variations can be made without departing from the ambit of the present invention. 
         [0050]    In one embodiment, the threader  6  is injection molded from thermoplastic material as a single piece including the loop  14  and the leading portion  10 . 
         [0051]    In another embodiment, the step of fastening the threader  6  to the follower  8  instead involves the steps of:
       passing the threader  6  through the loop  16  of the follower  8 ; and fastening the threader  6  to itself to form another loop  14  through which the follower  8  passes. The threader  6  is fastened to itself by heat welding the threader  6 .       
 
         [0053]    The dimensions of the dental cleaning aid  2  shown in the Figures are in millimetres, and are by way of example only. 
         [0054]    Alternative embodiments of the invention may involve fastening the threader  6  directly onto the fabric of the follower  8  without a loop arrangement, by instead thermal welding, gluing or stitching the threader  6  and the follower  8  together. 
         [0055]    In one embodiment, the ribbon like follower  8  may include two adjacent layers of fabric, instead of one layer. 
         [0056]    In compliance with the statute, the invention has been described in language more or less specific to structural or methodical features. It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to specific features shown or described since the means herein described comprises preferred forms of putting the invention into effect. The invention is, therefore, claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the proper scope of the appended claims appropriately interpreted by those skilled in the art.