Investigation of Oral Hygiene Outcomes of a Novel Chewing Gum in Young Adults: A Prospective pilot Study

Abstract

Objective To evaluate the short-term clinical effects of a novel oral health chewing gum (Toothpod) on oral hygiene outcomes in healthy adults, using the Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) as the primary clinical endpoint. Methods This prospective within-subject crossover pilot study included 50 healthy adults age 18 through 53 and older. Participants completed four sequential study phases: a 14-day baseline period, a 14-day Toothpod intervention period, a 7-day washout period, and a 14-day control gum period with a fixed treatment order. Clinical oral hygiene was assessed across five visits using the Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) and its component measures, debris score and calculus score. Clinical outcomes were analyzed using a mixed-effects modeling framework with participant as a random effect and visit and study phase as fixed effects. The primary analysis compared within-subject change during the Toothpod phase versus the control phase, with results reported as model-estimated mean differences, 95% confidence intervals, and confirmatory sensitivity analyses. Results Toothpod use was associated with significantly greater improvement in the primary endpoint, OHI-S, compared with the control gum. The estimated mean difference between Toothpod and control was -0.32 for OHI-S (95% CI, -0.61 to -0.03). A parallel improvement was observed for debris score (mean difference, -0.30; 95% CI, -0.50 to -0.10), whereas no meaningful treatment effect was observed for calculus score (mean difference, -0.02; 95% CI, -0.19 to 0.15). Comparison of pre-phase baseline values at Visit 2 and Visit 4 showed no strong evidence of incomplete washout or baseline drift prior to the control phase. Conclusions Toothpod demonstrated a measurable short-term treatment effect on OHI-S and plaque-related oral hygiene outcomes, with significantly greater improvement compared with a matched control gum. These findings support the potential utility of Toothpod as an adjunctive oral hygiene aid and justify further investigation in randomized studies and clinically relevant populations, including periodontally compromised patients.