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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.
74 questions in 15 reviews · cluster CL0288
current versionsNo studies 18 · 24.3%Ungraded 49 · 66.2%Very low 3 · 4.1%Low 2 · 2.7%Moderate 2 · 2.7%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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Anticaries vaccine or antibody (DNA, recombinant protein, nanoparticle-adjuvanted, live-vector, plant-based, or passive IgY immunization) targeting S. mutans vs Control (unvaccinated / empty vector / PBS / placebo animals) Streptococcus mutans colonization reduction (narrative; no CFU data reported) · Animal caries models (mice, rats, hamsters) challenged/colonized with Streptococcus mutans; one transgenic-plant… Assessing the Efficacy and Immunogenicity of Anticaries Vaccine-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (2025) | no estimate extracted | NR | Ungraded |
Anticaries vaccine or antibody (DNA, recombinant protein, nanoparticle-adjuvanted, live-vector, plant-based, or passive IgY immunization) targeting S. mutans vs Control (unvaccinated / empty vector / PBS / placebo animals) Salivary / secretory IgA (SIgA) antibody response (immunogenicity) · Animal caries models (mice, rats, hamsters) challenged/colonized with Streptococcus mutans; one transgenic-plant… Assessing the Efficacy and Immunogenicity of Anticaries Vaccine-A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (2025) | no estimate extracted | NR | Ungraded |
Gamified oral health interventions (mobile apps, serious games, augmented reality, game-based education) vs Conventional or traditional oral health education, or non-gamified interventions (comparator varied; several studies were single-arm/uncontrolled) Plaque control / oral hygiene clinical status (plaque index) · Children and adolescents aged <=18 years · Post-intervention (predominantly short-term; long-term follow-up in a minority of studies) The Application of Gamification in Children's Oral Health Management: Systematic Review. (2025) | In the gamified mobile health app group, plaque control was superior (P<.05) compared with the conventional method group [Zolfaghari 2021]; a gamified/reminder sticker-book group showed a significant improvement in… | NR | Ungraded |
Transbond XT with 1% chitosan and 1% TiO2 nanoparticles vs Transbond XT adhesive Streptococcus mutans count · Patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment · 1 day, 2 months, and 6 months after bonding Can Orthodontic Adhesive Systems Inhibit the Formation and Development of White Spot Lesions During Fixed… (2024) | Experimental group: significant decrease in S. mutans count was observed at the time points of 1 day, 2 months, and 6 months for both maxillary lateral incisor (p = 0.01) and maxillary second premolar teeth (p = 0.001). | 1 study · 24 participants | Ungraded |
TiO2-modified composite (1 wt.%) vs Control composite in contralateral quadrant Streptococcus mutans population · Patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment · 1 to 6 months after bonding Can Orthodontic Adhesive Systems Inhibit the Formation and Development of White Spot Lesions During Fixed… (2024) | No statistically significant difference between the S. mutans populations on the control and test sides at any time point. | 1 study · 40 participants | Ungraded |
nCaF2 primer vs Control Transbond primer Streptococcus mutans count · Patients undergoing fixed orthodontic treatment · 1, 3, and 6 months after bonding Can Orthodontic Adhesive Systems Inhibit the Formation and Development of White Spot Lesions During Fixed… (2024) | Statistically significant difference in bacterial count between the two primers only at T1 (p-value = 0.000). | 1 study · 31 participants | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · Range 1 to 18 months (maximum time-point per study), Study design: randomized controlled trials White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -1.79 [-3.63, 0.04] | 3 studies · 111 participants | Moderate |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · 6 months, Follow-up: 6 months White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -2.04 [-3.37, -0.70] | 5 studies · 253 participants | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · Range 1 to 12 months (maximum time-point per study), Study design: non-randomized studies of interventions White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -1.46 [-2.77, -0.15] | 5 studies · 246 participants | Moderate |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Salivary caries-associated bacteria (S. mutans and Lactobacilli, subjects with >10^5 CFU/mL) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · 3 and 6 months White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | Not meta-analyzed (insufficient number of studies). Both included observational studies (Mummolo 2020 [19]; Mummolo 2020 [25]) reported a higher number of subjects with S. mutans and Lactobacilli >10^5 CFU/mL in the… | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · 3 months, Follow-up: 3 months White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -1.08 [-1.93, -0.24] | 5 studies · 211 participants | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · Maximum reported time-point per study (range 1-18 months) White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -1.58 [-2.57, -0.58] | 8 studies · 357 participants | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (CA) vs Conventional fixed orthodontic appliances (CF) Plaque accumulation (Plaque Index) · Orthodontic patients undergoing comprehensive treatment (late mixed or permanent dentition, no active caries) · 12 months, Follow-up: 12 months White spot lesions, plaque accumulation and salivary caries-associated bacteria in clear aligners compared… (2023) | SMD -2.14 [-3.64, -0.64] | 3 studies · 113 participants | Ungraded |
Periodontal treatment (subgingival instrumentation, with or without antimicrobials/surgery) vs No active intervention/usual care Plaque index (PI) / oral hygiene · People with diabetes mellitus (type 1 or type 2, mostly type 2) and periodontitis, at least 16 years of age · 3-4 months Treatment of periodontitis for glycaemic control in people with diabetes mellitus (2022) · Cochrane | SMD -2.05 [-2.57, -1.53] | 18 studies | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances Plaque index (PI) · Adults undergoing orthodontic treatment · 6 to 12 weeks, Adults Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | MD -0.58 [-0.82, -0.34] | 4 studies · 202 participants | Very low |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances S. mutans presence (CFU > 10^5) · Adults undergoing orthodontic treatment · 3 months, Adults Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | RR 0.07 [0.01, 0.49] | 2 studies · 140 participants | Low |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances Plaque index (PI) · Adolescents/teenagers undergoing orthodontic treatment · 18 months, Adolescents Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | MD -0.40 [-0.77, -0.03] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances S. mutans presence · Adolescents/teenagers undergoing orthodontic treatment · 1 month, Adolescents Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | RR 0.86 [0.64, 1.14] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances S. mutans presence (CFU > 10^5) · Adults undergoing orthodontic treatment · 6 months, Adults Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | RR 0.22 [0.10, 0.51] | 2 studies · 140 participants | Low |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances Simplified plaque index (s-PI) · Adolescents/teenagers undergoing orthodontic treatment · 1 month, Adolescents Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | MD -14.78 [-16.74, -12.82] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Clear aligners (Invisalign / thermoformed aligners) vs Fixed appliances S. mutans counts (5th-root transformed) · Adolescents/teenagers undergoing orthodontic treatment · 1 month, Adolescents Impact of Aligners and Fixed Appliances on Oral Health during Orthodontic Treatment: A Systematic Review and… (2021) | MD -2.22 [-6.82, 2.38] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Intraglandular botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection vs No BoNT (placebo or pre-treatment baseline) Salivary Lactobacilli counts · Patients with drooling (sialorrhea) due to neurological disease · Before vs after BoNT injection (2018 study: significant Lactobacilli increase at 1 month; Wu 2011 and 2017 study no change) Oral health effects of botulinum toxin treatment for drooling: a systematic review. (2020) | No statistically significant changes in Lactobacilli CFU counts were reported by Wu et al. or by Tiigimae-Saar 2017. However, the 2018 study found that Lactobacilli CFU counts were significantly increased one month… | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Clindamycin + SRP vs Doxycycline + SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Intraglandular botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection vs No BoNT (placebo or pre-treatment baseline) Salivary osmolality (hydration level) · Patients with drooling (sialorrhea) due to neurological disease Oral health effects of botulinum toxin treatment for drooling: a systematic review. (2020) | no estimate extracted | 0 studies | No studies |
Intraglandular botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection vs No BoNT (placebo or pre-treatment baseline) Salivary Streptococcus mutans counts · Patients with drooling (sialorrhea) due to neurological disease · Before vs after BoNT injection Oral health effects of botulinum toxin treatment for drooling: a systematic review. (2020) | The RCT by Wu et al. reported no statistically significant changes in S. mutans CFU counts (p-values only). The studies of Tiigimae-Saar did not find statistically significant differences in S. mutans CFU counts either. | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Doxycycline + SRP vs Metronidazole + SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Intraglandular botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection vs No BoNT (placebo or pre-treatment baseline) Oral/salivary pH · Patients with drooling (sialorrhea) due to neurological disease · Before vs after BoNT injection Oral health effects of botulinum toxin treatment for drooling: a systematic review. (2020) | Wu et al. did not observe significant differences in participants' oral pH before and after BoNT-A injections between the active and control groups. There were also no statistically significant differences regarding… | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Clindamycin + SRP vs Metronidazole + SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Amoxicillin + clavulanate + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with chronic periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Amoxicillin + metronidazole + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with periodontitis (chronic and aggressive) · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Clindamycin + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Azithromycin + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with periodontitis (chronic and aggressive) · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Doxycycline + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Metronidazole + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with periodontitis (chronic and aggressive) · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Intraglandular botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT) injection vs No BoNT (placebo or pre-treatment baseline) Salivary buffering capacity · Patients with drooling (sialorrhea) due to neurological disease · Before vs after BoNT injection (2018 study: significant buffering increase at 1 month; 2017 study no change) Oral health effects of botulinum toxin treatment for drooling: a systematic review. (2020) | The quasi-experimental studies of Tiigimae-Saar found different results concerning the changes in buffering capacity. For the analysis carried out in 2017, no statistically significant change was observed. By contrast,… | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Tetracycline + SRP vs SRP Antimicrobial resistance · Adults with aggressive periodontitis · Long-term (≥ 1 year) Adjunctive systemic antimicrobials for the non‐surgical treatment of periodontitis (2020) · Cochrane | Included studies have not reported this outcome | NR | No studies |
Placebo rinse vs Pre-treatment (baseline, same group) Lactobacillus count (pre- vs post-treatment) · Medically healthy individuals (adults and children, 6-60 years) · Pre- vs post-treatment The antiplaque/anticariogenic efficacy of Salvadora persica (Miswak) mouthrinse in comparison to that of… (2019) | MD 0.34 [-0.50, 1.18] | 2 studies · 30 participants | Ungraded |
Placebo rinse vs Pre-treatment (baseline, same group) Streptococcus mutans count (pre- vs post-treatment) · Medically healthy individuals (adults and children, 6-60 years) · Pre- vs post-treatment The antiplaque/anticariogenic efficacy of Salvadora persica (Miswak) mouthrinse in comparison to that of… (2019) | MD 0.34 [-0.07, 0.76] | 5 studies · 71 participants | Ungraded |
Polaprezinc vs Azulene oral rinse Salivary flow rate · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | No data on salivary flow rates were reported. | 0 studies | No studies |
Bethanechol vs Artificial saliva Salivary flow rate (unstimulated, ml/min) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · End of RT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.12 [0.01, 0.23] | 1 study · 36 participants | Ungraded |
Chinese medicine vs No treatment/placebo Salivary flow rate (stimulated) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · End of RT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.09 [0.03, 0.15] | 1 study · 50 participants | Ungraded |
Metal-free cantilevered FDPs (feldspathic-veneered zirconia) vs Metal-ceramic cantilevered FDPs Plaque index (PI) · Adults (18 years or older) needing replacement of one premolar or incisor with a cantilevered fixed dental prosthesis · 24 months Metal‐free materials for fixed prosthodontic restorations (2017) · Cochrane | MD -0.10 [-1.04, 0.84] | 1 study · 19 participants | Ungraded |
Amifostine vs No treatment/placebo Salivary flow rate (mg/5 min, unstimulated) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · 12 months postRT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.32 [0.09, 0.55] | 1 study · 27 participants | Very low |
Palifermin vs Placebo Salivary flow rate · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | None of the trials evaluating palifermin provided data on salivary flow rates. | 0 studies | No studies |
Pilocarpine vs No treatment/placebo Salivary flow rate (unstimulated) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · Up to and including 3 months postRT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD -0.06 [-0.23, 0.11] | 1 study · 24 participants | Very low |
Amifostine (intravenous) vs Amifostine (subcutaneous) Salivary flow rate · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | No salivary flow rate data related to routes of administration of amifostine were reported. | 0 studies | No studies |
Amifostine vs No treatment/placebo Salivary flow rate (unstimulated) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · End of RT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.34 [0.07, 0.61] | 83 participants | Ungraded |
Bethanechol vs Artificial saliva Salivary flow rate (unstimulated, ml/min) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · 8 to 40 weeks postRT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.07 [-0.02, 0.16] | 1 study · 33 participants | Ungraded |
Bethanechol vs Artificial saliva Salivary flow rate (stimulated, ml/min) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · 8 to 40 weeks postRT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.21 [0.01, 0.41] | 1 study · 29 participants | Ungraded |
Bethanechol vs Placebo Salivary flow rate (stimulated, ml/min) · Patients receiving radiotherapy on its own or in addition to chemotherapy to the head and neck region · 2 months postRT Pharmacological interventions for preventing dry mouth and salivary gland dysfunction following radiotherapy (2017) · Cochrane | MD 0.15 [-0.03, 0.33] | 1 study · 97 participants | Ungraded |