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Each row is one question a systematic review asked: who, what, compared with what, and which outcome, with the effect it found and how certain that is. Words match anywhere in the field.
31 questions in 11 reviews · cluster CL0068
current versionsNo studies 0 · 0%Ungraded 27 · 87.1%Very low 0 · 0%Low 3 · 9.7%Moderate 1 · 3.2%High 0 · 0%
Ungraded means an effect was reported without a GRADE rating; it is not a gap. No studies means the review found nothing to answer the question. The six categories are a display order, not a score.
Intervention categories, outcome domains and clusters are a proposed key pending human validation. Clear all filters
| Question | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Dental caries (ECC/severe ECC) as exposure/grouping vs Caries-free controls Relative abundance of Streptococcus mutans · Individuals assessed for dental caries, predominantly children with early childhood caries (ECC) or severe ECC (age… A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Reported in 2 studies without pooling: Agnello 2017 median S. mutans relative abundance 0.73% (0.02-22.9) in caries vs 0.15% (0.006-10.4) in controls; Chalmers 2015 Streptococcus 35.63+/-17.04 (caries) vs 32.11+/-18.91… | 1 study · 50 participants | Ungraded |
Early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Number of detected salivary bacterial genera · Young children with early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Number of genera caries-affected 117 vs caries-free 123 genera | 1 study · 40 participants | Ungraded |
Early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Relative abundance of dominant salivary microbial community (7 genera) · Young children with early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Relative abundance (%) caries-affected 75% vs caries-free 74% | 1 study · 40 participants | Ungraded |
Caries-active status (presence of dental caries) vs Caries-free status Relative abundance of S. mutans in saliva · Systemically healthy individuals (children and adults, aged 40 months to 50 years) assessed for dental caries · Cross-sectional, Saliva sample Streptococcus mutans and Caries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (2025) | SMD 1.48 [0.45, 2.50] | 5 studies · 258 participants | Ungraded |
Anorexia nervosa (as exposure; diagnosed by DSM-III/III-R/IV/V) vs Healthy individuals without anorexia nervosa (age- and sex-matched controls) Stimulated salivary flow rate · Patients with anorexia nervosa aged >=12 years (mean age ~18.4; entirely female in reported data), general… The influence of anorexia nervosa on oral health and related parameters potentially relevant to orthodontic… (2025) | Stimulated salivary flow rate significantly lower in anorexic patients (Paszynska 2015 Nov 1.20 vs 1.57 ml/min, p=0.005; Paszynska 2018 0.99 vs 1.45 ml/min, p<0.00001); reported narratively, not meta-analyzed | 2 studies · 126 participants | Ungraded |
Electronic cigarette use vs Non-smokers Combined salivary IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α levels · People who use electronic cigarettes · Saliva The effects of electronic smoking on dental caries and proinflammatory markers: a systematic review and… (2025) | Cohen's d 0.21 [-0.36, 0.77] | 4 studies | Ungraded |
E-cigarette use (ENDS / vaping) vs Non-smokers Combined salivary proinflammatory markers (IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α) · Humans who use e-cigarettes (mostly adults, often with periodontal disease) assessed for oral proinflammatory markers · Cross-sectional (single time point) for most; a few 6-month prospective, Saliva The effects of electronic smoking on dental caries and proinflammatory markers: a systematic review and… (2025) | Cohen's d 0.21 [-0.36, 0.77] | 4 studies | Ungraded |
Anorexia nervosa (as exposure; diagnosed by DSM-III/III-R/IV/V) vs Healthy individuals without anorexia nervosa (age- and sex-matched controls) Salivary pH · Patients with anorexia nervosa aged >=12 years (mean age ~18.4; entirely female in reported data), general… The influence of anorexia nervosa on oral health and related parameters potentially relevant to orthodontic… (2025) | MD -0.39 [-0.54, -0.24] | 3 studies · 180 participants | Low |
Early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Streptococcus mutans and Veillonella spp. levels · Young children with early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Veillonella spp. significantly greater in caries subjects, but detection unrelated to lesion development and unlikely to modify caries attack (qualitative) | 1 study · 9 participants | Ungraded |
Caries-active status (presence of dental caries) vs Caries-free status Oral microbial community composition and diversity (other caries-associated taxa; alpha- and beta-diversity) · Systemically healthy individuals (children and adults, aged 40 months to 50 years) assessed for dental caries · Cross-sectional Streptococcus mutans and Caries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (2025) | Narrative synthesis (no pooled estimate): no bacterial genus or species other than S. mutans was consistently (reported in more than 2 studies) associated with caries-active status (Table 3; 15 of 19 studies for… | NR | Ungraded |
Unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) vs Bilateral cleft lip and palate (BCLP) Plaque Index (PI) · Patients with cleft lip and palate (CLP) Oral health in patients with cleft lip and palate: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis of… (2025) | MD -0.13 [-0.38, 0.12] | 2 studies · 117 participants | Ungraded |
Severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Streptococcus mutans relative abundance · Children under 6 years with severe early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Median relative abundance (%) caries 0.73 (range 0.02-22.9) vs control 0.15 (0.006-10.4) | 1 study · 50 participants | Ungraded |
Severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Streptococcus relative abundance · Children under 6 years with severe early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Mean relative abundance (%) caries 35.63 (SD 17.04) vs control 32.11 (SD 18.91) | 1 study · 9 (caries only; control not reported in Table 3) participants | Ungraded |
Orofacial cleft (cleft lip and/or palate) as exposure vs Healthy controls without cleft Plaque Index (PI) · Individuals assessed for periodontal health (mainly children and adolescents, age >2 years) Oral health in patients with cleft lip and palate: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis of… (2025) | MD 0.29 [0.24, 0.34] | 6 studies · 1618 participants | Low |
Anorexia nervosa (as exposure; diagnosed by DSM-III/III-R/IV/V) vs Healthy individuals without anorexia nervosa (age- and sex-matched controls) Salivary alpha-amylase · Patients with anorexia nervosa aged >=12 years (mean age ~18.4; entirely female in reported data), general… The influence of anorexia nervosa on oral health and related parameters potentially relevant to orthodontic… (2025) | MD 6.32 [-6.14, 18.79] | 4 studies · 226 participants | Low |
Anorexia nervosa (as exposure; diagnosed by DSM-III/III-R/IV/V) vs Healthy individuals without anorexia nervosa (age- and sex-matched controls) Unstimulated salivary flow rate · Patients with anorexia nervosa aged >=12 years (mean age ~18.4; entirely female in reported data), general… The influence of anorexia nervosa on oral health and related parameters potentially relevant to orthodontic… (2025) | MD -0.27 [-0.31, -0.24] | 4 studies · 316 participants | Moderate |
Co-presence of Veillonella spp. with Streptococcus mutans vs Streptococcus mutans acidogenesis without Veillonella spp. modulation (conceptual) Streptococcus mutans acid (lactic acid) production and cariogenic potential · Oral biofilm of children/individuals at risk of dental caries A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Narrative synthesis (no effect estimate): Veillonella spp. can inhibit acid production by S. mutans and compete for substrate by utilizing lactic acid, a by-product of S. mutans metabolism, as a carbon source,… | NR | Ungraded |
Severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free controls Veillonella spp. and Streptococcus mutans interaction · Children under 6 years with severe early childhood caries and caries-free controls A systematic review of Streptococcus Mutans and Veillonellae species interactions in dental caries… (2025) | Veillonella spp. may promote proliferation or survival of cariogenic species, as shown for interactions between Veillonella spp. and S. mutans. | 1 study · 82 participants | Ungraded |
Anorexia nervosa (as exposure; diagnosed by DSM-III/III-R/IV/V) vs Healthy individuals without anorexia nervosa (age- and sex-matched controls) Dental plaque accumulation (plaque index) · Patients with anorexia nervosa aged >=12 years (mean age ~18.4; entirely female in reported data), general… The influence of anorexia nervosa on oral health and related parameters potentially relevant to orthodontic… (2025) | In 2 of 3 studies anorexic patients had significantly higher plaque accumulation than controls (Pallier 78.8% vs 53.0%, p<0.01; Paszynska 43.8% vs 13.7%, p<0.001; Milosevic 84% vs 72%, NS); not meta-analyzed | 3 studies · 394 participants | Ungraded |
Non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) status and its oral microbiota (exposure/grouping) vs Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years without CLP (controls) Lactobacillus spp. salivary/plaque counts (cariogenic microbiota) · Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years with non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) Characterization of the oral microbiota and the relationship of the oral microbiota with the dental and… (2024) | For the outcome of the presence of Lactobacillus spp., there were no significant differences between patients with CLP and healthy patients, and the diversity of the studies led to high heterogeneity; however, the p… | NR | Ungraded |
Non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) status and its oral microbiota (exposure/grouping) vs Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years without CLP (controls) Streptococcus mutans salivary/plaque counts (cariogenic microbiota) · Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years with non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) Characterization of the oral microbiota and the relationship of the oral microbiota with the dental and… (2024) | Two studies were analyzed that reported the outcome in means of the presence of Streptococcus mutans, and that there was no difference between the means for healthy patients and those with CLP. The results of these… | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Moderate-severe active dental caries (exposure) vs Caries-free or mild dental caries (control) Salivary IL-6 level (pg/mL) · Children and young adults (3-25 years) Activity and levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in saliva of children and young adults with dental caries: a… (2024) | SMD 11.60 [6.27, 16.94] | 11 studies · 879 participants | Ungraded |
Moderate-severe active dental caries (exposure) vs Caries-free or mild dental caries (control) Salivary IL-8 level (pg/mL) · Children and young adults (3-25 years) Activity and levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in saliva of children and young adults with dental caries: a… (2024) | SMD 57.20 [-18.60, 133.00] | 7 studies · 522 participants | Ungraded |
Moderate-severe active dental caries (exposure) vs Caries-free or mild dental caries (control) Salivary TNF-α level (pg/mL) · Children and young adults (3-25 years) Activity and levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-8 in saliva of children and young adults with dental caries: a… (2024) | SMD 14.81 [4.76, 24.86] | 7 studies · 348 participants | Ungraded |
Periodontal therapy (scaling and root planing), post-treatment vs Pre-treatment High-level S. mutans (over 10^4 CFU/ml) · Periodontitis patients · Post-treatment, Overall Association between periodontitis and dental caries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2024) | OR 1.54 [0.47, 5.02] | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Cleft lip and palate vs No cleft lip and palate Streptococcus mutans mean levels/counts · Children and adolescents aged 0 to 18 years with nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate Characterization of the oral microbiota and the relationship of the oral microbiota with the dental and… (2024) | SMD 1.78 [1.36, 2.19] | 2 studies · 175 participants | Ungraded |
Non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) status and its oral microbiota (exposure/grouping) vs Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years without CLP (controls) Periodontal/gingival clinical status (gingival index, biofilm index, probing depth, bleeding on probing, attachment loss) · Children and adolescents aged 0-18 years with non-syndromic cleft lip and palate (CLP) Characterization of the oral microbiota and the relationship of the oral microbiota with the dental and… (2024) | Six studies (Ahluwalia, Rawashdeh, Funahashi, Perdikogianni, Quirynen, Costa) reported that patients with CLP had higher gingival index and biofilm/plaque index, deeper probing depth, more bleeding on probing and… | 6 studies | Ungraded |
Dental caries (caries-active; dmft/DMFT > 0) vs Caries-free individuals (dmft/DMFT = 0) Salivary/biofilm CA VI (carbonic anhydrase VI) concentration · Individuals assessed for dental caries (mainly children aged 2-9 years; one study in adults aged 18-24 years) · Cross-sectional (single time point) Associations of the activity and concentration of carbonic anhydrase VI with susceptibility to dental… (2023) | SMD -0.672 [-1.011, -0.332] | 2 studies · 141 participants | Ungraded |
Dental caries (caries-active; dmft/DMFT > 0) vs Caries-free individuals (dmft/DMFT = 0) Salivary/biofilm CA VI (carbonic anhydrase VI) activity · Children (age about 2-9 years) across the 7 meta-analyzed activity samples; excludes Kivela 1999 adults (18-24 years),… · Cross-sectional (single time point) Associations of the activity and concentration of carbonic anhydrase VI with susceptibility to dental… (2023) | SMD 0.894 [0.386, 1.392] | 7 studies · 411 participants | Ungraded |
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) vs Children and adolescents without JIA (healthy peers) Oral hygiene / dental plaque (Plaque Index, OHI-S) · Children and adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) Oral health in children and adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis - a systematic review and… (2019) | Some studies showed a statistically higher Plaque Index or Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S) in the JIA group [23, 25, 28, 31]; other studies did not find this association [22, 26, 27, 29, 30, 39]. Meta-analysis… | NR | Ungraded |
Perceived psychosocial stress vs No or lower perceived stress GCF elastase activity and non-surgical periodontal treatment outcome (salivary cortisol, ICTP measured; no effect reported) · Adults with periodontitis needing non-surgical periodontal treatment · 6-month follow-up Social-Biological Interactions in Oral Disease: A 'Cells to Society' View. (2016) | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 45 participants | Ungraded |