Findings

What do systematic reviews say?

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Evidence found and GRADE certainty

129 questions · 201 findings · 16 reviews

No studies found 1 · 0.5%GRADE not reported 181 · 90%Very low 7 · 3.5%Low 7 · 3.5%Moderate 5 · 2.5%High 0 · 0%

Oral health education only (verbal, written, or audio-visual education) delivered by non-dental health workers vs control (no intervention/usual care/isotonic exercise)

Caries experience at the surface level (dmfs/defs) · Children (mean age newborn to ~5.2 years) and their parents/carers

Oral-health-education-only interventions did not show a statistically significant effect on surface-level caries (dmfs SMD -0.20, 95% CI -0.43 to 0.03; 2 studies; not GRADE-rated).

1 finding from 1 review

Community and caregiver oral health education plus media campaign vs Pre-intervention BBTD rate

Baby bottle tooth decay prevalence · Alaska Native and American Indian Head Start children

High-intensity community education was associated with a 33% reduction in BBTD prevalence, without a GRADE rating.

3 findings from 1 review

Primary dental health aide (PDHA) service-delivery models (PDHA program; PDHA + intensive staffing; PDHA + robust prevention) vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

Projected Significant Caries (SiC) index · Alaska Native children (below age 18)

A simulation projected a 50% drop in the Significant Caries index for children (12.3 to 6.1) under the PDHA model (certainty not graded).

2 findings from 1 review

Primary dental health aide (PDHA) service-delivery models (PDHA program; PDHA + intensive staffing; PDHA + robust prevention) vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

Projected proportion of caries-free children (5-18 years) · Alaska Native children (below age 18)

A simulation projected 0% of children aged 5-18 would be caries-free under the baseline scenario (certainty not graded).

3 findings from 1 review

Primary dental health aide (PDHA) service-delivery models (PDHA program; PDHA + intensive staffing; PDHA + robust prevention) vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

Projected receipt of school-based prevention services · Alaska Native children (below age 18)

A simulation projected that over 90% of children would receive school-based prevention services under the PDHA model, up from 53% (certainty not graded).

1 finding from 1 review

Community and caregiver oral health education plus media campaign vs Pre-intervention baseline (and sites that discontinued the prevention program)

Reduction in prevalence of baby bottle tooth decay (BBTD) · Alaska Native and American Indian Head Start children

Community and caregiver oral health education was associated with a significant ~25% overall reduction in baby bottle tooth decay among Head Start children (certainty not graded).

1 finding from 1 review

Primary dental health aide (PDHA) service-delivery models (PDHA program; PDHA + intensive staffing; PDHA + robust prevention) vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

Projected dental care utilisation · Alaska Native children (below age 18)

A simulation projected that the PDHA program would raise dental care utilisation from 75% to 90% (certainty not graded).

1 finding from 1 review

Community and caregiver oral health education plus media campaign vs Pre-intervention BBTD rate

Baby bottle tooth decay prevalence · Alaska Native Head Start children

The Alaska Native site had a 20% increase in BBTD prevalence, without a GRADE rating.

1 finding from 1 review

PDHA program vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

School-based oral health promotion services · Alaska children

The PDHA program was projected to raise school-based oral health promotion service receipt from 53% to more than 90%, without a GRADE rating.

1 finding from 1 review

Primary dental health aide (PDHA) service-delivery models (PDHA program; PDHA + intensive staffing; PDHA + robust prevention) vs Baseline pre-intervention service-delivery scenario

Projected mean DMFT (children below 5 years) · Alaska Native children (below age 18)

A simulation projected mean DMFT in children under 5 would fall from 7.4 to 4.9 under the PDHA model (certainty not graded).

1 finding from 1 review

Gamified mobile health app vs Nongamified intervention

Regular use rate · Children or adolescents

One RCT reported a 72.4% regular-use rate with a gamified mobile health app versus 48.3% with a nongamified intervention; no GRADE assessment was reported.

1 finding from 1 review

Consumption of xylitol chewing gum by women (mothers) vs no intervention

Change in Mutans streptococci (MS) count in saliva · healthy people

Xylitol significantly reduced Mutans streptococci in saliva compared with no intervention (SMD -1.47, 95% CI -1.94 to -0.99; 3 trials), though heterogeneity was very high (I2=98%); not GRADE-rated.

1 finding from 1 review

Er:YAG laser irradiation of sound enamel before acid challenge vs No anticaries intervention (untreated enamel)

Demineralised lesion depth · Human tooth enamel specimens, sound/intact (in vitro)

Er:YAG laser irradiation significantly reduced demineralised lesion depth versus untreated control (SMD -0.55, 95% CI -0.97 to -0.12; 3 in vitro studies, I2=62%; ungraded).

1 finding from 1 review

Er:YAG laser irradiation of sound enamel before acid challenge vs No anticaries intervention (untreated enamel)

Enamel surface microhardness · Human tooth enamel specimens, sound/intact (in vitro)

In sound enamel, Er:YAG laser irradiation significantly increased surface microhardness after acid challenge versus untreated control (SMD 2.41, 95% CI 0.70 to 4.12; 3 in vitro studies; ungraded).

1 finding from 1 review