One embodiment of an actuator system for a power dental cleaning appliance to produce a tapping motion of bristle tufts in a dental cleaning appliance includes a plurality of piston elements (16) mounted in a brushhead for movement away from and then toward the brushhead (12). Bristle tufts (20) are positioned on the piston elements and move sequentially against and away from the teeth to produce a cleaning action. A low frequency fluid pressure action (40) in the range of 1-6 Hz maintains conformity of the bristle tufts in a low frequency sequence against the teeth, while a higher frequency fluid pressure action (42) in the range of 100-300 Hz moves the bristle tufts at that frequency to produce a tapping bristle action on the teeth to produce cleaning. In another embodiment, an actuation system includes an elongated actuator member (52) made of elastic material which expands and contracts about its longitudinal axis at a selected frequency by fluid pressure. A plurality of actuator sections (56) are fixedly mounted on the actuator element. The actuator sections are configured such that as the actuator member expands, an upper bridge portion (63) of the actuator section moves upwardly. The bristle tufts (74) mounted thereon produce a cleaning action on the teeth.