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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. Every word you type has to appear somewhere in the question, and the closest matches are ranked first.
10,375 questions in 429 reviews · Oral Health
current versionsNo studies 1,344 · 13%Ungraded 6,832 · 65.9%Very low 1,228 · 11.8%Low 613 · 5.9%Moderate 290 · 2.8%High 68 · 0.7%
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.
| Question | Effect | Evidence | Status / GRADE |
|---|---|---|---|
Herbal extracts (tea components; Chinese herbal mixture; freeze-dried black raspberry gel) vs Placebo or no treatment Clinical resolution (oral lesion not completely resolved) · People with a diagnosis of oral leukoplakia · 3 to 6 months Interventions for treating oral leukoplakia to prevent oral cancer (2016) · Cochrane | SoF 4, Clinical resolution (not completely resolved) at 3 to 6 months: '3 studies (freeze-dried black raspberry gel, green tea extract capsules, mixed tea) did not find evidence of benefit.' No GRADE. Effects text:… | 4 studies | Ungraded |
Root-end resection (with or without root-end filling; surgical retreatment) vs Root canal retreatment (non-surgical/orthograde) Healing - 10 years · People with one or more endodontically treated teeth and a periapical condition requiring retreatment · 10 years Endodontic procedures for retreatment of periapical lesions (2016) · Cochrane | RR 1.11 [0.88, 1.41] | 1 study · 95 participants | Ungraded |
Educational intervention with information and practical components (theoretical oral health education plus practical skills training) for nursing staff and/or residents vs (Optimised) usual care Oral health · Nursing home residents (mean age 78.3 to 86.0 years; more than 66% women; 62.1% to 87.3% with dental prostheses) Oral health educational interventions for nursing home staff and residents (2016) · Cochrane | SoF row 'Oral health': Illustrative risks -, relative effect -, participants/studies -, quality -; Comment: Outcome not reported. Not measured in any included study. | 0 studies | No studies |
Benzodiazepines (topical clonazepam) vs Placebo Adverse effects: dry mouth · People with primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS), that is, oral mucosal pain with no dental or medical cause for such… · short-term (up to 3 months), topical clonazepam Interventions for treating burning mouth syndrome (2016) · Cochrane | RR 3.00 [0.13, 70.16] | 1 study · 48 participants | Very low |
Preoperative analgesics (analgesics given before dental treatment) vs Placebo or no analgesics Intraoperative pain · Children and adolescents aged up to 17 years having dental treatment (orthodontic treatment, fillings, pulp treatment,… Preoperative analgesics for additional pain relief in children and adolescents having dental treatment (2016) · Cochrane | None of the included studies measured intraoperative pain. PUB3: 'The [three/four] studies did not measure intraoperative pain, ... cost or completion of treatment.' | 0 studies | No studies |
Perioperative infraorbital nerve block vs Intravenous analgesia Time to feeding after surgery (in minutes) · Children up to 13 years of age, undergoing cleft lip repair surgery Infraorbital nerve block for postoperative pain following cleft lip repair in children (2016) · Cochrane | MD -9.45 [-17.37, -1.53] | 2 studies · 128 participants | Low |
1.23% acidulated phosphate fluoride (APF) gel vs Not specified Remineralisation of early enamel caries · Children with incipient (early) enamel caries Caries remineralisation and arresting effect in children by professionally applied fluoride treatment - a… (2016) | One double-blind randomised trial found acidulated phosphate fluoride gel was not effective to remineralise early enamel caries. | 1 study | Ungraded |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Nocturnal symptom: nightmares (questionnaire) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) · 6 months Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.22 [0.01, 4.93] | 1 study · 23 participants | Ungraded |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Alteration of growth pattern (cephalometric data or facial analysis) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | The included study did not assess this outcome. | 0 studies | No studies |
Educational intervention with information and practical components (theoretical oral health education plus practical skills training) for nursing staff and/or residents vs (Optimised) usual care Adverse effects of the interventions · Nursing home residents (mean age 78.3 to 86.0 years; more than 66% women; 62.1% to 87.3% with dental prostheses) Oral health educational interventions for nursing home staff and residents (2016) · Cochrane | None of the included studies assessed adverse effects of the intervention. | 0 studies | No studies |
Preoperative ibuprofen vs Placebo Postoperative pain (continuous measure: self report using visual analogue scale) · Children and adolescents having orthodontic separator placement (without local anaesthetic) · 2 hours Preoperative analgesics for additional pain relief in children and adolescents having dental treatment (2016) · Cochrane | MD -13.44 [-23.01, -3.88] | 2 studies · 85 participants | Low |
Systemic beta carotene or carotenoids (incl. lycopene) vs Placebo or no treatment Improvement of histological features (not improved) · People with a diagnosis of oral leukoplakia · 5 months (treatment lasted 3 months) Interventions for treating oral leukoplakia to prevent oral cancer (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.24 [0.12, 0.46] | 1 study · 58 participants | Low |
Selective (incomplete) or stepwise carious tissue removal (SE/SW) vs Non-selective (complete) carious tissue removal Proportion of dentists utilizing SE/SW for deep carious lesions · Dentists managing deep carious lesions in permanent vital teeth Understanding dentists' management of deep carious lesions in permanent teeth: a systematic review and… (2016) | Proportion (%) 53 [44, 62] | 9 studies · 4199 participants | Ungraded |
Bowman-Birk inhibitor vs Placebo or no treatment Improvement of histological features (not improved) · People with a diagnosis of oral leukoplakia Interventions for treating oral leukoplakia to prevent oral cancer (2016) · Cochrane | SoF 6, Histological changes: 'Not measured'. Effects text: data on histological changes from Armstrong 2013 were not available for analysis, but study authors reported no statistically significant differences in… | 1 study | Ungraded |
Monitoring (any means of observation, supervision, keeping under review, measuring or testing at intervals) vs No monitoring Adverse events: Clinically important specific adverse events · People with serious mental illness (all included participants had schizophrenia); majority aged 18 to 65 years per… Oral health education (advice and training) for people with serious mental illness (2016) · Cochrane | No study reported useable data | 0 studies | No studies |
Cholinergics (bethanechol 15 mg/day) vs Placebo Adverse effects (narrative) · People with primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS), that is, oral mucosal pain with no dental or medical cause for such… · short-term (up to 3 months) Interventions for treating burning mouth syndrome (2016) · Cochrane | SoF4. Adverse effects: single study narratively reported 4 participants (20%) in the bethanechol arm experienced adverse events (nausea, dizziness, blood pressure fall, cold perspiration or sporadic abdominal pain);… | 1 study · 40 participants | Very low |
Intervention NR Dental caries prevalence in primary teeth (cavitated lesions) · Children aged 5-6 years in Latin America and the Caribbean · Studies with data collected after 2000 (21st century), Brazil Does the Decline in Caries Prevalence of Latin American and Caribbean Children Continue in the New Century?… (2016) | Prevalence 0.52 [0.49, 0.54] | 34 studies · 17874 participants | Ungraded |
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) vs No special instructions (control) Adverse effects of pain treatment · Adults undergoing orthodontic treatment Non‐pharmacological interventions for alleviating pain during orthodontic treatment (2016) · Cochrane | Adverse effects for CBT: Not measured. | NR | No studies |
Preoperative ibuprofen vs Placebo Adverse events · Children and adolescents having orthodontic separator placement (without local anaesthetic) Preoperative analgesics for additional pain relief in children and adolescents having dental treatment (2016) · Cochrane | One participant from the ibuprofen group and one from the placebo group reported a lip or cheek biting injury (Bernhardt 2001). No other adverse events were recorded for Bernhardt 2001 and Law 2000. | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Sodium fluoride (NaF) gel vs Not specified Remineralisation of early enamel caries · Children with early (incipient) enamel caries Caries remineralisation and arresting effect in children by professionally applied fluoride treatment - a… (2016) | One study using sodium fluoride gel showed a significant remineralising effect on early enamel caries. | 1 study | Ungraded |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Daytime symptom: tiredness (Brouillette questionnaire) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) · 6 months Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.26 [0.06, 1.05] | 1 study · 23 participants | Very low |
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) vs Conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece with a bur) Pulpal inflammation or necrosis · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years) · overall (1 week to 6 months) Lasers for caries removal in deciduous and permanent teeth (2016) · Cochrane | RR 1.29 [0.32, 5.14] | 4 studies | Ungraded |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Nocturnal symptom: habitual snoring (questionnaire) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) · 6 months Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.18 [0.06, 0.55] | 1 study · 23 participants | Very low |
Intervention NR Dental caries prevalence in primary teeth (cavitated lesions) · Children aged 5-6 years in Latin America and the Caribbean · Studies with data collected after 2000 (21st century) Does the Decline in Caries Prevalence of Latin American and Caribbean Children Continue in the New Century?… (2016) | Prevalence 0.56 [0.52, 0.59] | 42 studies · 26467 participants | Ungraded |
Perioperative infraorbital nerve block vs Infiltration of the incision (peri-incisional infiltration) Pain measured by valid instruments · Children up to 13 years of age, undergoing cleft lip repair surgery Infraorbital nerve block for postoperative pain following cleft lip repair in children (2016) · Cochrane | No numeric data available; one study reported difference favouring control group only at 6 hours postoperatively. One study reported that children in the intervention group had lower pain scores between 1 and 8 hours… | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Chemically cured glass ionomer cement vs Chemically cured glass phosphonate Taste preference (patient preference) · Patients with full arch fixed orthodontic appliances with bands attached to molars (patients with cleft lip/palate or… · Approximately 12 months (to end of treatment) Adhesives for fixed orthodontic bands (2016) · Cochrane | Clark 2003: no statistically significant difference in taste between the two cements (glass ionomer vs glass phosphonate); authors caution the finding because both cements were used at the same sitting, so the taste of… | 1 study | Ungraded |
Any experimental intervention (surgical or non-surgical) vs None (placebo or no treatment) Improvement in nutritional intake · People of any age and either sex, in any setting, with BRONJ; bisphosphonate exposure past or current; includes people… Interventions for treating bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) (2016) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 0 studies | No studies |
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy plus standard care (surgery, antibiotics, oral rinse) vs Standard care alone (surgery, antibiotics, oral rinse) Healing of osteonecrosis - improvement ('healed' or 'improved' vs 'unchanged' or 'worse') · People with BRONJ (mean age ~66 years; most treated with bisphosphonates for cancer (multiple myeloma, breast cancer)… · 6 months Interventions for treating bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) (2016) · Cochrane | RR 1.31 [0.78, 2.22] | 1 study · 40 participants | Ungraded |
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) vs Conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece with a bur) Durability of restoration · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years) · 6 months follow-up Lasers for caries removal in deciduous and permanent teeth (2016) · Cochrane | RR 2.40 [0.65, 8.77] | 4 studies · 236 participants | Very low |
Selective or stepwise carious tissue removal vs Non-selective or complete carious tissue removal Proportion of dentists selecting selective or stepwise removal · Dentists surveyed about deep carious lesions in permanent teeth · Schwendicke 2016 (Norway) Understanding dentists' management of deep carious lesions in permanent teeth: a systematic review and… (2016) | Proportion (%) 99 [95, 100] | 1 study · 199 participants | Ungraded |
Anticonvulsants (gabapentin + alpha lipoic acid) vs Placebo Adverse effects: drowsiness · People with primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS), that is, oral mucosal pain with no dental or medical cause for such… · short-term (up to 3 months) Interventions for treating burning mouth syndrome (2016) · Cochrane | RR 14.52 [0.73, 290.44] | 1 study · 80 participants | Very low |
Papilla base incision (PBI) vs Complete papilla mobilisation (sulcular incision) Height loss of interdental papilla - 1 year · People requiring retreatment of periapical lesions (failed root canal therapy) · 1 year Endodontic procedures for retreatment of periapical lesions (2016) · Cochrane | MD -1.04 [-1.48, -0.60] | 1 study · 12 participants | Very low |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Side effects and tolerability (patient self report) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) · 6 months Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | Tolerability: 73.7% fitted with oral appliance (14/19 children) tolerated the treatment well and 26.3% (five children) discontinued therapy. Side effects: the included study did not assess this outcome. | 1 study · 19 participants | Ungraded |
Brain wave music (BWM) vs No special instructions (control) Patient‐reported pain intensity or pain relief (VAS, NRS or categorical scale) · Adults undergoing orthodontic treatment · 7 days Non‐pharmacological interventions for alleviating pain during orthodontic treatment (2016) · Cochrane | MD -4.72 [-15.83, 6.39] | 1 study · 24 participants | Ungraded |
Physical barriers (tongue protector) vs Placebo Change in QoL - anxiety (surrogate marker) · People with primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS), that is, oral mucosal pain with no dental or medical cause for such… · short-term (up to 3 months) Interventions for treating burning mouth syndrome (2016) · Cochrane | MD 0.16 [-3.19, 3.51] | 1 study · 50 participants | Very low |
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy plus standard care (surgery, antibiotics, oral rinse) vs Standard care alone (surgery, antibiotics, oral rinse) Healing of osteonecrosis - healed ('healed' vs 'improved', 'unchanged' or 'worse') · People with BRONJ (mean age ~66 years; most treated with bisphosphonates for cancer (multiple myeloma, breast cancer)… · 6 months Interventions for treating bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.95 [0.44, 2.04] | 1 study · 40 participants | Ungraded |
Educational intervention with information and practical components (theoretical oral health education plus practical skills training) for nursing staff and/or residents vs (Optimised) usual care Oral health-related behaviour of residents · Nursing home residents Oral health educational interventions for nursing home staff and residents (2016) · Cochrane | One study (Bellomo 2005) assessed oral health-related behaviour of residents; 60 residents were interviewed about toothbrushing habits. Use of toothbrushes and the frequency of brushing during the study period were… | 1 study · 60 participants | Ungraded |
Perioperative infraorbital nerve block vs Intravenous analgesia Need for analgesic prescription for pain (supplemental analgesic requirements) · Children up to 13 years of age, undergoing cleft lip repair surgery Infraorbital nerve block for postoperative pain following cleft lip repair in children (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.27 [0.13, 0.55] | 1 study · 82 participants | Very low |
Any experimental intervention (surgical or non-surgical) vs Active control (surgical or non-surgical) Healing of the osteonecrosis · People of any age and either sex, in any setting, with BRONJ; bisphosphonate exposure past or current; includes people… Interventions for treating bisphosphonate‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (BRONJ) (2016) · Cochrane | no estimate extracted | 0 studies | No studies |
Perioperative infraorbital nerve block vs Placebo (sham block) Heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure · Children up to 13 years of age, undergoing cleft lip repair surgery Infraorbital nerve block for postoperative pain following cleft lip repair in children (2016) · Cochrane | Ahuja 1994: no significant difference in heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure between groups. Takmaz 2009: no differences in respiratory rate and blood pressure, but children in the placebo group had… | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Daytime symptom: sleepiness (Brouillette questionnaire) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) · 6 months Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | RR 0.64 [0.11, 3.78] | 1 study · 23 participants | Very low |
Oral appliance or functional orthopaedic appliance vs Placebo or no treatment Change of the arch perimeter (plaster models) · Children with obstructive sleep apnoea (aged 15 years or younger) Oral appliances and functional orthopaedic appliances for obstructive sleep apnoea in children (2016) · Cochrane | The included study did not assess this outcome. | 0 studies | No studies |
Monitoring (any means of observation, supervision, keeping under review, measuring or testing at intervals) vs No monitoring Dental state: No clinically important change in plaque index · People with serious mental illness (all included participants had schizophrenia); majority aged 18 to 65 years per… Oral health education (advice and training) for people with serious mental illness (2016) · Cochrane | See comment; Not estimable; 0 (0 studies); no study reported useable data | 0 studies | No studies |
Motivational interview plus oral health education vs Oral health education Leaving the study early · People with serious mental illness (all included participants had schizophrenia); majority aged 18 to 65 years per… Oral health education (advice and training) for people with serious mental illness (2016) · Cochrane | RR 3.00 [0.33, 27.23] | 1 study · 60 participants | Moderate |
Motivational interview plus oral health education vs Oral health education Self regulation: Average score (Treatment Self Regulation Questionnaire, high score = good) · People with serious mental illness (all included participants had schizophrenia); majority aged 18 to 65 years per… · Autonomous Oral health education (advice and training) for people with serious mental illness (2016) · Cochrane | MD 0.7 [-0.43, 1.83] | 1 study · 56 participants | Ungraded |
Cholinergics (bethanechol 15 mg/day) vs Placebo Relief of burning/discomfort (symptom relief; pain intensity) · People with primary burning mouth syndrome (BMS), that is, oral mucosal pain with no dental or medical cause for such… · short-term (up to 3 months) Interventions for treating burning mouth syndrome (2016) · Cochrane | RR 5.00 [0.26, 98.00] | 1 study · 40 participants | Very low |
Glass ionomer cement root-end filling vs Amalgam Healing - 5 years · People requiring retreatment of periapical lesions (failed root canal therapy) · 5 years Endodontic procedures for retreatment of periapical lesions (2016) · Cochrane | RR 1.00 [0.84, 1.20] | 1 study · 67 participants | Ungraded |
Intervention NR Development of carious lesions on sealed occlusal pits and fissures · 60 months Caries-Preventive Effect of High-Viscosity Glass Ionomer and Resin-Based Fissure Sealants on Permanent… (2016) | RD -0.07 [-0.14, -0.01] | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Dementia vs Older people without dementia Decayed teeth · Older people with dementia Oral health and orofacial pain in older people with dementia: a systematic review with focus on dental hard… (2016) | MEAN Without dementia 0.0 to 2.9; with dementia 0.3 to 6.0 (mean number of decayed teeth) | 11 studies | Ungraded |
Experimental chewing adjuncts (bite wafers or chewing gum) vs No chewing gum, placebo, or control (no adjunct) Adverse effects of pain treatment · Adolescents undergoing orthodontic treatment Non‐pharmacological interventions for alleviating pain during orthodontic treatment (2016) · Cochrane | Adverse effects: Not measured. | NR | No studies |