The impetus behind Sunstar Americas’ development of the Eez-Touch Disposable Prophy Angle was to provide clinician comfort.
Get a Grip
The handle on the Eez-Touch prophy angle is dimpled, which the manufacturer claims aids in gripping the instrument, giving the operator better control and allowing for easier placement of the cup. When the hygienist evaluators were asked to rate the ease of grip when attaching and removing the Eez-Touch prophy angle, 7 rated it as excellent and 1 rated it as very good. Said 1 evaluator, “I really like the grips.”
Vibration
Sunstar Americas claims that the Eez-Touch prophy angle reduces vibration and hand/finger fatigue because vibrations are absorbed from the spinning cup by the angle, which is in a soft, cushioned, latex-free material. Seven of the hygienists who evaluated the prophy angle rated it as very good to excellent for reduction of vibration in the fingers during use; 1 rated it as good. When asked about reduction of finger, hand, and arm fatigue, only 6 of the evaluators responded, rating the angle as good to excellent. One evaluator said she “found no increase in fatigue; smooth operation of [the] angle made it easier to perform [the] procedure.” Two evaluators responded “not applicable,” 1 commenting that she “[didn’t] notice a difference” and the other saying that she “[did] not get [fatigue] from any angles.”
Packaging
The ratings on the packaging for the Eez-Touch prophy angle ranged from excellent to fair. Overall, the evaluators commented on the difficulty of opening the packaging. One evaluator noted that, “the package could benefit from a perforated edge to ease opening, especially when the hygienist is in a ‘rush’.” Another evaluator commented, “Some angle packaging was more difficult to open than others, [but] it would not discourage me from using [the angles] again.”
Ease of Use
When the evaluators were asked about ease of use of the Eez-Touch prophy angle, 5 rated them as excellent and 3 rated them as very good. One of the evaluators commented that she was “impressed with access to [maxillary] posterior buccal surfaces because of the short cup; the cup adapted well to tooth surfaces.” Another noted that, “the angles are very easy to use but they tend to be louder on operation than other angles.”
Time Savings
The evaluators found the Eez-Touch prophy angle good to excellent when it comes to saving time during cleaning/ polishing. One hygienist who evaluated the angle said that because “the angle is well made, there is no need to have an extra nearby. I have had experience with other brands in which the cup disintegrated and didn’t last through an entire polishing.”
Overall Satisfaction
The hygienist evaluators were asked to compare Eez-Touch with other similar prophy angles. Seven of the evaluators said the Eez-Touch angle is somewhat or much better than other similar angles; 1 said it was about the same. When asked to give an overall satisfaction rating for the prophy angle, 1 rated it as fair because she didn’t find them to be very different from other angles, but 7 of the evaluators rated the Eez-Touch prophy angle good to excellent. Said one evaluator, “I really like the fact that the prophy paste does not ‘sling’.” Another commented that the “cup never came off during use; the plastic never cracked while placing it on the handpiece.”
