Recently i bought some waxed dentotape, thinking floss is floss and they're all the same. It was difficult going as dentotape is a bit wider and seems a bit thicker than my normal floss. I tried to be as gentle as possible, but it hurt, so after i did most of my bottom teeth i gave up and used what was left of my normal waxed floss.

The next morning most of my gums at the front of my bottom teeth were swollen and i could feel a pulsing pain. I stopped flossing as i didn't want to make things worse, but i did brush each day. I think the bristles on the brush may have been a tad hard on my damaged gums, so i've since bought a baby toothbrush.

This all happened one and a half weeks ago and my gums are taking forever to heal. I phoned my dentist and spoke to the lady in his office and she said there is no speedy way to heal my gums but to keep using the antiseptic mouth wash and not brush the damaged areas. I'm wondering whether it's worth going in to see my dentist or if it's a waste of money.

Has anybody else been in this situation? I can't believe this much damage could come from that dentotape and then later brushing with a normal toothbrush. I'm have difficulty biting into things and can only eat food which is soft or has been cut into bite sized pieces. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks :)

Maybe you could try swishing warm salty water around several times a day and back off of the antiseptic for a day or two.

Thanks for your reply, i have used salt and water to get rid of mouth ulcers and thought it might help for this. I went to see my doctor b/c i had a dose of the flu on top of my mouth problem and she gave a prescription for an antibiotic which would combat both problems at the same time.

I'm still doing the salt water routine though as i agree with you that it's easier going on a wound than antiseptic mouth washes. I also have found that when using the salt water after brushing my teeth that my mouth feels and tastes better for longer than when i've used the commercial mouth washes.

I also phoned the company which sells the Dentotape and they documented what happened to me. They have sent me a refund (more than the product actually cost) and a nice and new fancy toothbrush.

Aubrey this is a great topic.
I'v tried a few flosses and what happened, some of the flosses would get stuck in the back teeth. Thats the 3 big teeth in the back.
Then I would get a pain in the gum area.
I didn't like the Crest floss, it was to wide and didn't have a good feel.
The Oral B Mint Flavor Ultra Floss - 55 Yards is a very good floss.
It feels nice inbetween the gums
The only thing, I wouldn't try to use it to floss the 3 big teeth in the back.
I use the The Oral B Mint Flavor Ultra Floss to floss all my teeth except the 3 big teeth in the back.
Then the first big teeth on the right and left side of my mouth.
Thats 2 teeth ahead of the Wisdom tooth.
I use the Johnson and Johnson Mint Waxed floss.
This is the only floss I'v tried that doesn't get stuck in those 2 teeth.
I dont even try anymore to floss in the 2 other back teeth including the Wisdom tooth. Its to hard to floss there.
The Oral B floss feels better on the main teeth, but for the back Teeth the Johnson and Johnson Mixed waxed floss does a good job of getting inbetween those 2 teeth.

For the 2 back teeth on the right and left side including the Wisdom teeth.
I use the Oral B Interdental Brushes
They sell this in all the drug stores and supermarkets.
Its easy to get inbetween the teeth to get out any plaque or food with this.
You can do a search of it online.

I'v also tried the Johnson and Johnson gentle gum care with flouride, Mint Woven Floss.
I would only use this floss on the the main teeth, exactly as i do it with the Oral B.
This Johnson and Johnson Woven Floss is not as strong as the Oral B floss.
Dont even try using the Mint Woven floss on any of the back teeth.
The floss will get stuck in the teeth.

I would also tell you, I'v been using the Jason Sea Fresh Spearmint Mouthwash.
This mouth wash has a ton of vitamins in it, natural calcium, zinc, potassium, magnesium, a multitude of trace minerals and Dead Sea Salts to help care for teeth and gums.
Using this has improved my gums.
You can use it before you brush. Rinse your Mouth with it for like 15 seconds.
Or you can just put some on your fingers and put it on your gums.
The Jason Nutri Smile mouth wash with Orange, Cinnamon & Mint.
Its also very good for the gums. That has a ton of vitamins in it too.

Thanks for all the info Dan. Well my mouth is virtually back to normal and it's one experience i never want to ever have again!!

The problem with floss is that the packaging doesn't give much info on it. All it gives you is how many metres of floss you will get, it might say "waxed" and that's pretty much it. I believe they should label floss as being thin, medium and wide or something along those lines.

They gave me a refund and a free toothbrush, but at the end of the day i had to pay for antibiotics, couldn't eat proper food for a week prior to seeing my doctor and the antibiotics (flagyl) gave me an upset stomach for a few days. From now on i will be sticking to my normal brand of floss and not venturing out for anything new until they get more informative details on the packaging!!