Brushless Toothbrush

The toothbrush may eventually give way to the Orajet, a device developed by Manhattan Dentist Charles L. Hyser (TIME, Feb. 22, 1943). Like many other dentists, Dr. Hyser has long been dissatisfied with the toothbrush. He has told patients that it does not do a very good job of cleaning, and may cause "abrasion cavities" by wearing off the enamel. A year and a half ago he started out to find something better. Last week, having cho sen the final design, he was ready to start 500-a-day production in a Mt. Vernon, N.Y. machine shop.

The Orajet is a 22-inch tube of trans parent plastic with a detachable nozzle on one end and an expansion bolt on the other. The whole thing weighs only two ounces. The user squirts toothpaste (about the same amount usually put on a toothbrush) into the nozzle, puts the other end into a wash basin faucet (it won't work on a Pullman car, not enough pressure). When the water is turned on, a jet of mixed water and toothpaste cleans the teeth. One shot of toothpaste is enough to last all around the mouth.

Preliminary laboratory tests, says Dr.Hyser, have shown a "tremendous" reduction in the number of bacteria in the mouth after the brushless cleaning. Other tests are still to be made, but he is convinced it will keep tartar from forming. It cleans along the gum line, where many cavities start, and between the teeth. About 200 samples of slightly different designs are now being used by other dentists and by Dr. Hyser's patients.

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