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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.
239 questions in 37 reviews · cluster CL0069
current versionsNo studies 4 · 1.7%Ungraded 170 · 71.1%Very low 42 · 17.6%Low 6 · 2.5%Moderate 10 · 4.2%High 7 · 2.9%
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Outer carious dentin (by lesion depth/location) vs Inner carious dentin MMP-2 location/depth · Human ex vivo carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | The evidence is very uncertain about the MMP-2 location in dentin, as no effect direction was found (MMP-2 ubiquitous and variable across regions). | 4 studies | Very low |
Outer carious dentin (by lesion depth/location) vs Inner carious dentin MMP-20 location/depth (outer vs inner) · Human ex vivo carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | MMP-20 probably reduces in carious outer dentin when compared to carious inner dentin (moderate certainty); MMP-20 was significantly lower in outer dentin than inner (Shimada et al., 2009). | 1 study · 5 participants | Moderate |
Carious dentin before cavity sealing vs Carious dentin after cavity sealing MMP-9 expression/activity · Human ex vivo carious dentin under sealed cavities · Before vs after sealing (Kuhn 2016: 60 days follow-up) Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | There is no difference of MMP-9 expression/activity before and after cavity sealing, although the evidence is very uncertain. | 2 studies · 48 participants | Very low |
Root caries lesion biofilm vs Sound-site supragingival biofilm Collagen-degrading bacteria · Root caries lesion biofilm Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 1 study | Ungraded |
Before cavity sealing vs After cavity sealing MMP-2 expression/activity · Human carious dentin · 60 days after cavity sealing Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 48 participants | Very low |
Root carious dentin vs Coronal carious dentin MMP-13 presence/activity · Human ex vivo carious dentin (coronal and root) Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | MMP-13 may be increased in root caries when compared to coronal, but the evidence is very uncertain; no MMP-13 activity observed in the crown region by western blot (Yeon Lee et al., 2013). | 1 study · 7 participants | Very low |
Early childhood caries / severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free children Growth stunting / low linear growth (height-for-age z-score) · Children in early childhood (0-6 years) · 1-year follow-up, Renggli et al. 2021 (Cambodia) The bi-directional relationship between growth stunting and early childhood caries: a rapid review. (2023) | OR 1.8 [1.0, 3.0] | 1 study · 1307 participants | Ungraded |
Carious dentin vs Sound dentin Cathepsin B (CT-B) presence/activity · Human ex vivo carious dentin (mostly coronal), natural caries lesions Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | CT-B may be increased in carious dentin when compared to sound dentin, but the evidence is very uncertain (Vidal et al., 2014; Nascimento et al., 2011: significantly higher in caries, p<0.05). | 2 studies · 22 participants | Very low |
Root carious dentin vs Coronal carious dentin MMP-13 activity · Human root and coronal carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 7 participants | Very low |
Outer/shallower carious dentin vs Inner/deeper carious dentin MMP-8 location/presence · Human carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | No clear single direction for MMP-8 by lesion depth/location (Kuhn 2016 NS by location; Shimada 2009 higher in outer); very low | 2 studies | Very low |
Irradiated carious dentin vs Non-irradiated carious dentin MMP-20 expression · Human carious dentin from irradiated and non-irradiated subjects Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 36 participants | Very low |
Dental caries vs Caries-free CA VI concentration · Participants with dental caries and caries-free participants Associations of the activity and concentration of carbonic anhydrase VI with susceptibility to dental… (2023) | SMD -0.66 [-1.00, -0.32] | 2 studies · 141 participants | Ungraded |
Outer carious dentin (by lesion depth/location) vs Inner carious dentin MMP-9 location/depth · Human ex vivo carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | The evidence is very uncertain about the MMP-9 expression in different locations and lesion depth, as studies showed opposite effect directions. | 3 studies | Very low |
Carious dentin before cavity sealing vs Carious dentin after cavity sealing MMP-2 expression/activity · Human ex vivo carious dentin under sealed cavities · Before vs after sealing (Kuhn 2016: 60 days follow-up) Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | There is no difference of MMP-2 expression/activity before and after cavity sealing, although the evidence is very uncertain. | 2 studies · 48 participants | Very low |
Irradiated carious dentin vs Non-irradiated carious dentin MMP-20 expression/activity · Human ex vivo carious dentin (head/neck radiotherapy) Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | There is no difference about the MMP-20 expression in irradiated vs. non-irradiated carious dentin, but the evidence is very uncertain (Gomes-Silva et al., 2017b). | 1 study · 36 participants | Very low |
Early childhood caries / severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free children Risk of malnutrition (younger children, 6 months to 6 years) · Children in early childhood (0-6 years) · Zahid et al. 2020 (Nepal; children 6 months-6 years) The bi-directional relationship between growth stunting and early childhood caries: a rapid review. (2023) | MD 0.13 [-0.64, 0.38] | 1 study · 273 participants | Ungraded |
Carious dentin vs Sound dentin Cathepsin B presence/activity · Human coronal carious dentin and sound dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 2 studies · 22 participants | Very low |
Outer carious dentin vs Inner carious dentin MMP-20 expression · Human carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 1 study · 5 participants | Moderate |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food intake · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Immediate/short-term (post-exposure), Overall (pooled across designs) Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.25 [0.15, 0.35] | 41 studies | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food preference · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Overall (pooled across designs) Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.30 [0.12, 0.49] | 12 studies | Ungraded |
CD4+ T-cell count below 250 cells/mm3 HIV-related oral lesions · Children living with HIV receiving ART · CD4+ T-cell count below 250 cells/mm3 Oral Health Status of Children and Adolescents Living with HIV Undergoing Antiretroviral Therapy: A… (2022) | OR 1.916 [0.613, 2.513] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food preference · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Randomized trials Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.38 [0.03, 0.72] | 8 studies · 1802 participants | Very low |
Cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) vs No cleft lip and/or palate (non-CL/P) Care index (CI = f/[d+m+f]) in the primary dentition · Children in the primary dentition with non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) and comparable children without CL/P Caries in children with and without orofacial clefting: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Two out of three studies for which the CI could be calculated (Nagappan 2019; Veiga 2016) showed a higher CI for non-CL/P children demonstrating a higher proportion of extraction-based treatment in CL/P children… | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Female sex vs None (descriptive single-group pooled prevalence) Female sex prevalence (among children with caries) · Children with dental caries (deciduous and/or permanent dentition) in low- and middle-income countries Individual, Family, and Socioeconomic Contributors to Dental Caries in Children from Low- and Middle-Income… (2022) | Prevalence 0.4968 [0.4749, 0.5186] | 6 studies · 1999 participants | Ungraded |
CD4+ T-cell count <250 cells/mm3 vs CD4+ T-cell count >=250 cells/mm3 HIV-related oral lesions · Children and adolescents living with HIV on ART/HAART · Cross-sectional (case-control; single time point), CD4+ T-cell count <250 cells/mm3 vs higher Oral Health Status of Children and Adolescents Living with HIV Undergoing Antiretroviral Therapy: A… (2022) | CLWH with CD4+ <250 cells/mm3 were about twice as likely to have HIV-related oral lesions: Baghirath 2013 OR 1.916 (95% CI 0.613 to 2.513), p=0.001; Divakar 2015 OR 1.999 (95% CI 0.129 to 3.688), p=0.001. Not pooled. | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Dental caries vs Caries-free oral health Alpha diversity (Observed, Chao1, Shannon, and Simpson) · Participants in oral 16S rRNA caries microbiome studies Meta-analysis of caries microbiome studies can improve upon disease prediction outcomes. (2022) | Higher alpha diversity in caries than health; p<0.001 (Wilcoxon; no pooled effect size reported) | 19 studies · 2016 participants | Ungraded |
Dentinal caries in primary dentition (at 5 years) vs Caries-free primary dentition Dentinal caries in permanent (newly erupted) teeth · School children and adolescents (6-18 years) followed from primary dentition (baseline examination before 72 months of… · 7-year follow-up, Dentinal caries in primary dentition Does Early Childhood Caries Increase Caries Development among School Children and Adolescents? A Systematic… (2022) | OR 3.2 [2.6, 3.9] | 1 study · 3282 participants | Ungraded |
Dental caries (early childhood caries, ECC) vs Caries-free controls Relative abundance of Veillonella spp. · Children with early childhood caries (ECC) and caries-free children · Overall (all sample types) Meta-Analysis Using NGS Data: The Veillonella Species in Dental Caries. (2022) | MD 2.22 [0.54, 3.90] | 6 studies · 319 participants | Very low |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food intake · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Immediate/short-term (post-exposure), Nonrandomized studies Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.34 [0.12, 0.57] | 11 studies · 8436 participants | Very low |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Purchase requests · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Nonrandomized studies Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | A single observational study contributed to the combination-of-P-values analysis for purchase requests. | 1 study | Very low |
Dental caries (early childhood caries, ECC) vs Caries-free controls Relative abundance of Veillonella spp. · Children with early childhood caries (ECC) and caries-free children · Saliva Meta-Analysis Using NGS Data: The Veillonella Species in Dental Caries. (2022) | MD -1.05 [-7.67, 5.57] | 2 studies · 161 participants | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food choice · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Randomized trials Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | OR 1.97 [1.46, 2.66] | 22 studies · 3838 participants | Moderate |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food intake · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Immediate/short-term (post-exposure), Randomized trials Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.20 [0.10, 0.30] | 30 studies · 2908 participants | Moderate |
Fluoride-containing dental care products / fluoride intake vs Male vs female Sex/gender differences in fluoride intake or dental-care-product contribution · Participants stratified by sex/gender (especially young children) Fluoride Intake Through Dental Care Products: A Systematic Review. (2022) | no estimate extracted | 0 studies | No studies |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food purchasing · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | No clear evidence of association with purchasing. Vote counting: any association of public health harm in 2 of 5 studies (40%; 95% CI, 7.3%-83.0%); all 3 observational NRSs found an association (2 harm, 1 benefit),… | 5 studies | Very low |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Body weight / BMI · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | A single moderate-quality observational study found no significant association between food marketing and body weight/BMI. | 1 study | Very low |
Dental caries vs Caries-free oral health Beta diversity and community composition · Participants in oral 16S rRNA caries microbiome studies Meta-analysis of caries microbiome studies can improve upon disease prediction outcomes. (2022) | no estimate extracted | 19 studies · 2016 participants | Ungraded |
Dental caries (early childhood caries, ECC) vs Caries-free controls Relative abundance of Veillonella spp. · Children with early childhood caries (ECC) and caries-free children · Supragingival biofilm/plaque Meta-Analysis Using NGS Data: The Veillonella Species in Dental Caries. (2022) | MD 3.11 [0.67, 5.55] | 4 studies · 158 participants | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food choice · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Overall (pooled across designs) Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | OR 1.77 [1.26, 2.50] | 27 studies | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food choice · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Nonrandomized studies Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | OR 0.56 [0.05, 5.99] | 5 studies · 416 participants | Very low |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Purchase requests · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Randomized trials Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | Combination of P values statistically significant in both model iterations, indicating evidence of an association of food marketing with purchase requests. | 5 studies | Moderate |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Diet-related noncommunicable diseases · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | No studies were found with relevant data on diet-related noncommunicable diseases or validated surrogate indicators. | 0 studies | No studies |
CD4+ T-cell count below 250 cells/mm3 HIV-related oral lesions · Children living with HIV receiving ART · CD4+ T-cell count below 250 cells/mm3 Oral Health Status of Children and Adolescents Living with HIV Undergoing Antiretroviral Therapy: A… (2022) | OR 1.999 [0.129, 3.688] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Access to/visit to dental services vs None (descriptive single-group pooled prevalence) Access to/visited dental services prevalence · Children in low- and middle-income countries (both with and without dental caries) Individual, Family, and Socioeconomic Contributors to Dental Caries in Children from Low- and Middle-Income… (2022) | Prevalence 0.4444 [0.2773, 0.6182] | 5 studies | Ungraded |
Study-specific random forest classifier vs Caries versus healthy disease-state labels Study-specific disease-state discrimination · Oral microbiome samples in 15 case-controlled studies Meta-analysis of caries microbiome studies can improve upon disease prediction outcomes. (2022) | no estimate extracted | 15 studies | Ungraded |
Enamel caries in primary dentition (at 5 years) vs Caries-free primary dentition Dentinal caries in permanent (newly erupted) teeth · School children and adolescents (6-18 years) followed from primary dentition (baseline examination before 72 months of… · 7-year follow-up, Enamel caries in primary dentition Does Early Childhood Caries Increase Caries Development among School Children and Adolescents? A Systematic… (2022) | OR 1.6 [1.2, 2.0] | 1 study · 3282 participants | Ungraded |
Cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) vs No cleft lip and/or palate (non-CL/P) Restorative index (RI = f/[d+f]) in the primary dentition · Children in the primary dentition with non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) and comparable children without CL/P Caries in children with and without orofacial clefting: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Of the five studies for which the RI could be calculated, three of them (Dahllof 1989; Nagappan 2019; Veiga 2016) showed a lower RI for children with CL/P compared to children with no CL/P demonstrating a lower… | 5 studies | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food preference · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Nonrandomized studies Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.21 [0.07, 0.35] | 4 studies · 1972 participants | Very low |
Observed population vs Not applicable Oral problems prevalence · Pediatric leukemia patients in the United Arab Emirates · Overall Oral Health of Children and Adolescents in the United Arab Emirates: A Systematic Review of the Past Decade. (2021) | Prevalence 60 | 1 study | Ungraded |
Systemic sclerosis (SSc / scleroderma) vs SSc-free individuals (controls) Probing depth (PD) · Adults (general and hospital populations assessed in case-control studies) Oral manifestations of patients with systemic sclerosis: a meta-analysis for case-controlled studies. (2021) | SMD 3.101 [1.374, 4.829] | 7 studies | Ungraded |