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Evidence found and GRADE certainty

828 questions · 1,477 findings · 103 reviews

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No studies found 5 · 0.3%GRADE not reported 1,402 · 94.9%Very low 38 · 2.6%Low 20 · 1.4%Moderate 11 · 0.7%High 1 · 0.1%

38% SDF (indirect pulp capping) vs Resin-modified glass ionomer cement (RMGIC)

Secondary prevention of caries · children with deep occlusal carious lesions in permanent molars

No significant difference in secondary caries prevention was reported; no effect estimate or GRADE rating was reported.

1 finding from 1 review

38% SDF plus potassium iodide (KI) (indirect pulp capping) vs Resin-modified glass ionomer cement (RMGIC)

Secondary prevention of caries · children with deep occlusal carious lesions in permanent molars

No significant difference in secondary caries prevention was reported; no effect estimate or GRADE rating was reported.

1 finding from 1 review

SDF plus potassium iodide vs Split into two contrasts: (1) TCS paste (arrest 100%); (2) CPP-ACP (arrest 100%); SDF+KI arrest 54.8% at 24 months, p<.001

Caries arrest · Patients with early enamel carious lesions on permanent molars

SDF plus potassium iodide arrested 54.8% of early enamel lesions at 24 months; no pooled estimate or GRADE rating was reported.

1 finding from 1 review

38% SDF (every 6 months) vs no treatment

Inactive (arrested) carious lesions on permanent first molars · Children with dental caries in permanent (first) molars

Six-monthly SDF produced significantly more inactive (arrested) lesions than no treatment in children's permanent molars (0.3 vs 0.1; p<0.05; ungraded).

1 finding from 1 review

Silver diamine fluoride (SDF) vs Any (current minimally invasive techniques)

Not applicable (no eligible studies) · Adults with coronal (crown) dental caries in permanent teeth

No eligible studies assessed SDF for coronal caries in adults; this is an evidence gap identified by the review.

1 finding from 1 review

Resin-based fissure sealant vs Fluoride varnish

Caries incidence of first permanent molars (FPMs) · Schoolchildren aged 6-12 years with sound occlusal surfaces of the first permanent molars

Pit and fissure sealant and fluoride varnish showed no statistically significant difference in caries incidence of first permanent molars at 24 months (RR 0.65, 95% CI 0.31 to 1.38; I2=89%; not GRADE-rated).

1 finding from 1 review

Learning disability (CLD) vs No learning disability (CNLD)

Early childhood caries experience (mean dmft) · Children aged 1-18 years

In primary teeth, meta-analysis found no evidence of a difference in caries experience (dmft/deft) between children with and without learning disabilities (SMD 0.41, 95% CI -0.14 to 0.96; 8 studies; certainty not graded).

4 findings from 1 review
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Learning disability (CLD) vs No learning disability (CNLD)

Dental caries in permanent teeth · Children aged 1-18 years

Across all learning disabilities, meta-analysis found no evidence of a difference in permanent-tooth caries experience (DMFT) between children with and without learning disabilities (SMD -0.43, 95% CI -0.91 to 0.05; 16 studies; certainty not graded).

4 findings from 1 review
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Learning disability (CLD) vs No learning disability (CNLD)

Unmet dental treatment need · Children aged 1-18 years

Narrative reports from 6 studies suggested greater unmet dental treatment need in children with learning disabilities (5 of 6 studies), but no quantitative data were available (certainty not graded).

1 finding from 1 review

Intervention not reported

Mean DMFT/dmft (caries severity) · Children (<12 years) and adolescents (12-18 years) with type 1 diabetes

The pooled mean DMFT/dmft (caries severity) was 5.7 (SD 3.6) across 5 studies; certainty not graded.

1 finding from 1 review

Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (PDT) vs No photodynamic therapy (untreated negative control)

Microbial reduction (viable count, log CFU/mL) · Patients with dental caries (in vivo cariogenic microorganisms, including children with early childhood caries)

In randomized clinical trials, photodynamic therapy significantly reduced cariogenic microbial counts versus untreated control (SMD -1.16, 95% CI -2.02 to -0.30; 2 trials), but heterogeneity was high (I2=70%) and considered too high to rely on; certainty was not graded.

1 finding from 1 review

Silver diamine fluoride (SDF, including SDF + fluoride varnish) vs Other standard-of-care caries treatments pooled (placebo, ART, or ART + fluoride varnish)

Oral health-related quality of life · Children with dental caries

SDF had no significant effect on oral health-related quality of life versus pooled standard-of-care caries treatments (SMD -0.06, 95% CI -0.20 to 0.08; ungraded).

1 finding from 1 review