$499? That’s dental as anything

But smart brushes

do promise polish,

writes Sophie

Aubrey.

We have smartphones, smart TVs, smart speakers, and now smart technology has trickled into our bathrooms, via smart toothbrushes.

These electric toothbrushes go beyond the typical two-minute timer. They are fitted with AI technology that connects to an app by Bluetooth, detects the brush head’s position, maps out a person’s teeth and gives real-time guidance on pressure and coverage, with alerts for when technique is subpar.

Philips and Oral-B both now sell premium models designed to last several years, but with eyewatering prices. The latest, from Philips, with a bathroom ‘‘shelfie”- friendly design and a vegan leather charging case, costs $499.

One friend refers to hers as ‘‘the Ferrari of toothbrushes’’, and people who use one swear by it.

But do we need them? And are they worth forking out for?

Dr James Fernando, a University of Melbourne dentist and researcher, says first up that both manual and electric brushes are effective at removing plaque, bacteria and food particles, thereby preventing gum disease and tooth decay, as long as a person has good technique.

Scientists have found people who use electric toothbrushes have better oral hygiene with less plaque and gingivitis.

Fernando says powered brushes are less involved, so may carry less room for human error because when we are distracted, they keep working away. ‘‘Most people can concentrate less on what they’re doing, and perhaps it can be easier for them to come up with a good result,’’ he says. ‘‘People tend to really enjoy them.’’

Fernando says over-vigorous manual brushing is a common problem, carrying a risk of dental abrasion from wearing away tooth enamel or gum recession, which exposes tooth roots.

It’s why he’s all for the smart toothbrush feature that adjusts the pressure and tells people if they’re brushing too hard. ‘‘As we age, that becomes more of a concern because we sometimes have less enamel,’’ he says.

It’s also common for people to unconsciously favour and neglect certain parts of their mouth.

‘‘Having that technology to make sure you’re getting all the areas in your mouth could be helpful,’’ Fernando says. ‘‘Because we’re brushing our teeth all the time, we tend not to think about it. If you have the app in front of you and it’s saying you haven’t brushed these teeth – even if your dentist has told you that a few months ago at your check-up – you’re probably more likely to respond.’’

Fernando says people who use a high-end brush often report getting the clean feeling they’re used to getting in the dentist chair. That mainly comes from blasting away the furriness of plaque, but it’s also from removing the salivary pellicle, which is a layer of proteins that protects the tooth surface, Fernando says. ‘‘You can get it off with the manual toothbrush, but the electric ones are really good at polishing so it feels cleaner,’’ he says.

Dentist Dr Mikaela Chinotti, oral health promoter for the Australian Dental Association, she says electric toothbrushes can better access corners that are hard to reach and she personally finds a pressure indicator and timer alerts useful. But she says you still need to learn correct use, and manual brushing can result in perfectly clean teeth.

‘‘It’s not what you have, it’s how you use it. The old adage applies to tooth-brushing,’’ she says.

The Oral-B and Philips brushes work slightly differently – one has round oscillating, spinning heads, while sonic brushes use rapid side to side vibrations – but both use rapid movement to shake off plaque and scrub away stains.

To patients who have never used an electric toothbrush, Chinotti suggests trying a basic model first.

‘‘An entry-level electric toothbrush will be fine, and as you go up in models, you get extra features that are fantastic to have,’’ she says.

Fernando usually recommends a base model first up for his patients.