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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.
5,762 questions in 263 reviews · Dental caries
current versionsNo studies 321 · 5.6%Ungraded 4,450 · 77.2%Very low 455 · 7.9%Low 297 · 5.2%Moderate 200 · 3.5%High 39 · 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Cariogram multivariable caries-risk model (including modified/reduced-predictor versions) vs Alternative prediction model(s) within the same study, or no formal comparator (models compared descriptively; no between-model statistical test) Predictive performance of the Cariogram for caries increment (negative likelihood ratio, LR-) · Children/adolescents (coronal caries) and older adults (root caries); populations from areas with varying caries risk · Follow-up >=1 year (included studies 1-5 years), Model validation studies Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | Review-stated LR- range 0.5-0.61 across the Cariogram validation models (with one exception). Model performance was largely unaffected by removing the predictors mutans streptococci in saliva, saliva secretion and… | 6 studies | Ungraded |
Older age vs Younger age Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) · Adolescents (10-19 years) Oral-health-related quality of life in adolescents: umbrella review. (2023) | Worse oral health status, older age, female sex and worse socioeconomic status were significantly associated with worse OHRQoL. [Body: the influence of religion and age on OHRQoL is unknown; Biological data such as… | NR | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Fontana,2011 [16]; model performance 5 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.88 [1.34, 2.64] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Gao,2013 [29]; model performance 3 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR− 0.45 [0.37, 0.55] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Resin infiltration vs Self-assembling peptide P11-4 Remineralization / reduction in lesion severity (change in QLF, laser fluorescence, or lesion area) · Patients with white spot lesions / early caries lesions (WSLs/ECLs), including orthodontic and non-orthodontic… Comparison of therapies of white spot lesions: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. (2023) | SMD -0.39 [-0.97, 0.20] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Glass ionomer cement (GIC) vs Resin-modified glass ionomer cement (RMGIC) Secondary caries (occurrence) · Patients requiring dental restoration; deciduous (primary) teeth · 2 or more years of follow-up Clinical efficacy of bioactive restorative materials in controlling secondary caries: a systematic review… (2023) | RR 1.92 [1.03, 3.56] | 7 studies · 1193 participants | Moderate |
38% SDF every 6 months vs no treatment new active or inactive carious lesions · schoolchildren with caries in permanent first molars · 36 months A systematic review on the effect of silver diamine fluoride for management of dental caries in permanent… (2023) | Preventative fraction (%) 72 | 1 study · 452 participants | Ungraded |
Eugenol-based temporary cement vs Eugenol-free temporary cement Pulp necrosis incidence · Vital teeth · Eugenol-based Incidence and influential factors in pulp necrosis and periapical pathosis following indirect restorations:… (2023) | Proportion 3.34 [1.66, 5.58] | 7043 participants | Ungraded |
38% SDF plus potassium iodide as indirect pulp capping material vs resin-modified glass ionomer cement as indirect pulp capping material secondary caries prevention · children with deep occlusal carious lesions in permanent molars · 12 months A systematic review on the effect of silver diamine fluoride for management of dental caries in permanent… (2023) | SDF+KI 2 (8%) vs RMGIC 0 (0%); p=0.63 (NS), 12 months | 1 study · 49 participants | Ungraded |
Mouth pain vs No mouth pain Body mass index-for-age z score · Children aged 1–6 years · Mouth pain The bi-directional relationship between growth stunting and early childhood caries: a rapid review. (2023) | MD 0.29 | 1 study · 593 participants | Ungraded |
Elective neck dissection (at time of primary tumour resection) vs Therapeutic (delayed) neck dissection Adverse events associated with treatment · Adults with oral cavity cancer (tongue or floor of mouth) and clinically negative neck nodes Interventions for the treatment of oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers: surgical treatment (2023) · Cochrane | RR 1.31 [1.11, 1.54] | 2 studies · 746 participants | Moderate |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Fontana,2011 [16]; model performance 9 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR− 0.31 [0.22, 0.43] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Root caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Ritter,2016 [22]; model performance 4 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.94 [1.42, 2.65] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Compomer vs Glass ionomer cement (GIC) Secondary caries (occurrence) · Patients requiring dental restoration; permanent teeth · 2 or more years of follow-up Clinical efficacy of bioactive restorative materials in controlling secondary caries: a systematic review… (2023) | RR 3.20 [0.59, 17.33] | 2 studies · 79 participants | Very low |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Hänsel Petersson,2015 [30]; model performance 3 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 2.72 [2.02, 3.68] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Fontana,2011 [16]; model performance 11 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR− 0.41 [0.30, 0.56] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Oral health promotion programs vs No oral health promotion program Oral health-related quality of life · Adolescents aged 10-19 years Oral-health-related quality of life in adolescents: umbrella review. (2023) | no estimate extracted | NR | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Christian,2020 [27]; model performance 1 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.14 [0.92, 1.41] | 1 study | Ungraded |
38% SDF every 12 months vs water every 12 months new carious lesions or fillings at tooth level · children with caries in permanent molars · 24 months A systematic review on the effect of silver diamine fluoride for management of dental caries in permanent… (2023) | Preventative fraction (%) 41 | 1 study · 501 participants | Ungraded |
Bioactive restorative materials (RMGIC and compomer combined) vs Resin composite (RC) Secondary caries (occurrence) · Patients requiring dental restoration; deciduous (primary) teeth · 1 year of follow-up, Overall (all bioactive vs resin composite) Clinical efficacy of bioactive restorative materials in controlling secondary caries: a systematic review… (2023) | RR 0.54 [0.07, 4.10] | 3 studies · 321 participants | Ungraded |
38% SDF (one-time application) vs Inactive control (water or no treatment) New coronal carious lesions or fillings on permanent (first) molars (caries prevention) · Children with dental caries in permanent (first) molars · 18 months, Monse 2012 (SDF one-time, no toothbrushing programme; Philippines) A systematic review on the effect of silver diamine fluoride for management of dental caries in permanent… (2023) | Mean new caries increment (surfaces) 0.12 | 1 study · 1016 participants | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Fontana,2011 [16]; model performance 6 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.87 [1.49, 2.35] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Birpou,2019 [25]; model performance 7 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.58 [1.09, 2.30] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Gao.2010 [17]; model performance 1 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 3.06 [2.73, 3.43] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Sentinel node biopsy (neck dissection only if biopsy positive) vs Elective neck dissection Recurrence · Adults with oral cavity or oropharyngeal cancer Interventions for the treatment of oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers: surgical treatment (2023) · Cochrane | Recurrence: Garrel 2020 reported that the number of patients with recurrences in both arms was almost identical; unable to use the data (variable follow-up); 279 participants (1 RCT). | 1 study · 279 participants | Very low |
Tooth location Pulp necrosis incidence · Vital teeth · Cheung et al. 2005 mandibular posterior Incidence and influential factors in pulp necrosis and periapical pathosis following indirect restorations:… (2023) | Proportion 6.1 | 1 study | Ungraded |
Surgery plus radiotherapy vs Radiotherapy alone Disease-free survival · Adults with oral cavity or oropharyngeal cancer Interventions for the treatment of oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers: surgical treatment (2023) · Cochrane | Disease-free survival: not reported. | 0 studies | No studies |
Calcium hydroxide (CH) vs Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) Dentin bridge formation · Patients with carious pulp exposure in permanent teeth undergoing partial pulpotomy · ≥6 months follow-up Comparative efficacy of materials used in patients undergoing pulpotomy or direct pulp capping in carious… (2023) | Four RCTs compared CH with MTA for dentin bridge formation (all used partial pulpotomy; all at low risk of bias except Qudeimat 2007). Apart from Wei 2010, trials yielded implausibly large ORs with very wide 95% CIs;… | 4 studies | Ungraded |
Calcium hydroxide (CH) vs Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) Clinical and radiographic success (composite) · Patients with carious pulp exposure in immature permanent teeth · ≥6 months; follow-up range 1-2 years, Root maturation: immature Comparative efficacy of materials used in patients undergoing pulpotomy or direct pulp capping in carious… (2023) | OR 2.22 [0.13, 36.67] | 2 studies · 106 participants | Very low |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Pang,2021 [19]; model performance 2 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.48 [1.20, 1.82] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Root caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Ritter,2016 [22]; model performance 5 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 2.04 [1.49, 2.81] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Root caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Ritter,2016 [22]; model performance 2 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR− 0.36 [0.23, 0.56] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Calcium hydroxide (CH) vs Mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) Clinical and radiographic success (composite) · Patients with carious pulp exposure in permanent teeth undergoing direct pulp capping (DPC) · ≥6 months; follow-up range 1-3 years, Treatment performed: DPC Comparative efficacy of materials used in patients undergoing pulpotomy or direct pulp capping in carious… (2023) | OR 3.10 [1.66, 5.79] | 4 studies · 559 participants | Moderate |
Mutans streptococci present in oral samples at baseline vs Mutans streptococci absent in oral samples at baseline Development of any (cavitated or non-cavitated) carious lesion · Children younger than 6 years with caries-free primary dentition (no cavitated or non-cavitated lesions at baseline) · 1 year, Follow-up: 1 year Is Mutans Streptococci count a risk predictor of Early Childhood Caries? A systematic review and… (2023) | OR 4.37 [3.50, 5.45] | 4 studies · 2016 participants | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Fontana,2011 [16]; model performance 3 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 1.88 [1.65, 2.28] | 1 study | Ungraded |
CPP-ACP enamel pre-treatment for prevention of white spot lesions before bonding metallic orthodontic brackets vs No enamel pre-treatment before bonding, or treatment with another material Shear bond strength (SBS) of metallic orthodontic brackets · Sound enamel of extracted permanent human teeth · Before bonding, Prevention of WSLs (sound enamel) Shear bond strength of metallic brackets bonded to enamel pretreated with CPP-ACP: a systematic review and… (2023) | MD 1.009 [-0.723, 2.740] | 7 studies | Ungraded |
Operative treatment of dental caries lesions vs No caries treatment Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) · Adolescents (10-19 years) Oral-health-related quality of life in adolescents: umbrella review. (2023) | the operative treatment of caries lesions has a positive effect on OHRQoL, despite the low quality of evidence [9]. There is low evidence that the OHRQoL of children and adolescents improved following caries… | NR | Ungraded |
Pre-operative caries fillings or crowns vs Intact teeth Pulp necrosis incidence · Vital teeth · Intact teeth Incidence and influential factors in pulp necrosis and periapical pathosis following indirect restorations:… (2023) | Proportion 5 | 1 study | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal and/or root caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Powell,1991 [21]; model performance 1 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 2.20 [0.74, 6.53] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Gum chewing (sugar-free) vs No gum chewing (control) Self-reported thirst · Elderly (>60 years) and medically compromised adults with xerostomia / dry mouth · Various (preoperative period to 3 + 1 months) The effect of gum chewing on xerostomia and salivary flow rate in elderly and medically compromised… (2023) | Narrative vote-count: of 7 studies measuring thirst, 6 found gum chewing reduced thirst [16,20,21,26,27,31] and 1 detected no effect [29]. | 7 studies | Ungraded |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Gao.2010 [17]; model performance 5 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 4.37 [3.80, 5.04] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Chlorhexidine (CHX) mouthwash (adjunct to mechanical cleaning) vs Blank control (no mouthwash; before-after comparison) Plaque Index (PI, Silness & Loe 1964) · Orthodontic patients (any age) undergoing orthodontic treatment (mostly fixed appliances) · <=3 months (short-term) The efficacy of mouthwashes on oral microorganisms and gingivitis in patients undergoing orthodontic… (2023) | WMD -0.70 [-1.12, -0.27] | 4 studies · 188 participants | Very low |
Periodontal disease assessed by loss of attachment (LOA / clinical attachment loss) vs Individuals without periodontal disease (by LOA) Oral health-related quality of life (continuous), measured by OHIP-14 / OIDP · Indian adults and elderly (police, teachers, general and institutionalised populations) Impact of oral conditions on oral health-related quality of life among Indians- a systematic review and… (2023) | SMD -0.04 [-2.01, 1.92] | 4 studies · 3414 participants | Very low |
38% SDF plus potassium iodide (KI) (indirect pulp capping) vs Resin-modified GIC (RMGIC) Secondary caries prevention in young permanent first molars · Children with deep occlusal caries in young permanent first molars (indirect pulp capping) · 12 months, Baraka 2022 A systematic review on the effect of silver diamine fluoride for management of dental caries in permanent… (2023) | SDF+KI 2 (8%) vs RMGIC 0 (0%); p=0.63 (NS), 12 months | 1 study · 49 participants | Ungraded |
Outer/shallower carious dentin vs Inner/deeper carious dentin MMP-9 location/depth · Human carious dentin Presence of host and bacterial-derived collagenolytic proteases in carious dentin: a systematic review of ex… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 3 studies | Very low |
Periodontal disease assessed by Community Periodontal Index vs No periodontal disease assessed by community periodontal index Poor oral health-related quality of life · Indians Impact of oral conditions on oral health-related quality of life among Indians- a systematic review and… (2023) | no estimate extracted | 3 studies · 1345 participants | Very low |
Multivariable caries prediction model vs Additional prediction model(s) Coronal caries increment · Individuals of all ages · Follow-up ≥1 year, Pang,2021 [19]; model performance 4 Multivariable prediction models of caries increment: a systematic review and critical appraisal. (2023) | LR+ 2.71 [2.18, 3.38] | 1 study | Ungraded |
Mutans streptococci present in oral samples at baseline vs Mutans streptococci absent in oral samples at baseline Development of any (cavitated or non-cavitated) carious lesion · Children younger than 6 years with caries-free primary dentition (no cavitated or non-cavitated lesions at baseline) · 2.7 years (31 months median), Follow-up: 2.7 years (31 months median) Is Mutans Streptococci count a risk predictor of Early Childhood Caries? A systematic review and… (2023) | OR 33.00 [3.18, 342.26] | 1 study · 28 participants | Ungraded |
Early childhood caries / severe early childhood caries vs Caries-free children Change in height-for-age z-score (adjusted model) · Children in early childhood (0-6 years) · ~9.73-month follow-up, Shen et al. 2019 (China; adjusted) The bi-directional relationship between growth stunting and early childhood caries: a rapid review. (2023) | Regression coefficient -0.02 [-0.04, 0.01] | 1 study · 1111 participants | Ungraded |
Strategies to integrate oral health into primary care (e.g., training/education of non-dental primary care professionals, policy/financing and health-insurance changes, colocation of dental and medical services, interprofessional and community-health-worker collaboration, teledentistry, integrated oral health assessment tools, school-based activities) vs No integration / usual care (or pre-integration baseline; many included studies uncontrolled) Knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of staff and patients regarding oral health · People of all ages and abilities served through primary care and related settings (children, pregnant women, older… Strategies to integrate oral health into primary care: a systematic review. (2023) | Knowledge/attitudes/perceptions of staff and patients was the second most studied outcome (n=16). Patient and staff perceptions on various aspects of the integration strategy were usually reported as positive.… | 16 studies | Ungraded |