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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 |
|---|---|---|---|
Caries assessment at enamel threshold vs None Caries prevalence · European adolescents aged 17 years · Exact age Dental caries at enamel and dentine level among European adolescents - a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Prevalence 0.83 [0.71, 0.94] | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Pulpotomy with Biodentine vs Pulpotomy with calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) Clinical and radiographic success rate (>=6 months) · Human permanent teeth with irreversible pulpitis due to carious pulp exposure · >=6 months, Pulp capping material: Biodentine vs calcium hydroxide Outcome of pulpotomy in permanent teeth with irreversible pulpitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Biodentine demonstrated a statistically significantly higher success rate than calcium hydroxide (indirect comparison; Supplementary Table S5, not available). | NR | Ungraded |
Chlorhexidine (CHX) vs Ozonated water Reduction in level of contamination by particles >5 um (droplets) at <2 m from patient's oral cavity · Dental patients undergoing aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) and the dental healthcare providers treating them · operator level; aerobic cultures Preprocedural mouth rinses for preventing transmission of infectious diseases through aerosols in dental… (2022) · Cochrane | MD -17.8 [-33.7, -1.9] | 1 study · 40 participants | Very low |
High-viscosity GIC atraumatic restorative treatment vs No control Restoration survival · Children with caries in primary molars · 2 years, Multi-surface Minimal intervention dentistry for managing carious lesions into dentine in primary teeth: an umbrella review. (2022) | Survival rate 59 | 9 studies | Ungraded |
P-hydroxybenzoic acid vs Placebo Presence of dry socket · Adults (>18 years) having permanent tooth extraction (predominantly mandibular third molars) · Follow-up: median 7 days Local interventions for the management of alveolar osteitis (dry socket) (2022) · Cochrane | RR 0.08 [0.00, 1.37] | 1 study · 45 participants | Ungraded |
Hope-based intervention vs Pain education Pain intensity · People aged 12 years and over with painful TMD lasting 3 months or longer · Treatment completion Psychological therapies for temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) (2022) · Cochrane | MD 0.10 [-13.52, 13.72] | 1 study · 29 participants | Ungraded |
Single-visit root canal treatment vs Multiple-visit root canal treatment (two or more visits) Swelling or flare-up · People aged 10 years or above requiring root canal treatment; permanent teeth with completely formed apex and without… Single versus multiple visits for endodontic treatment of permanent teeth (2022) · Cochrane | RR 0.56 [0.16, 1.92] | 6 studies · 605 participants | Very low |
Fluoride-releasing resin-based sealant vs No sealant (no treatment) Mean caries increment (mean number of new cavitated occlusal lesions) · Children with caries-free or non-cavitated carious lesion primary molars, aged 3-7 years (paediatric department,… · 24 months Sealants for preventing dental caries in primary teeth (2022) · Cochrane | Mean number of new cavitated occlusal lesions 0.23 (SD 0.06) in sealed molars vs 0.29 (SD 0.06) in control molars (Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed-rank test P = 0.42) | 1 study · 85 participants | Ungraded |
Caries severity measurement (mean number of decayed, missing and filled permanent teeth, DMFT; WHO criteria) vs None (descriptive prevalence review; subgroup analyses by urban/rural status, country and year) Caries severity (mean DMFT) · 12-year-old children (permanent dentition) in Africa · Country: Kenya Prevalence of dental caries in the permanent dentition amongst 12-year-olds in Africa: a systematic review… (2022) | MEAN 0.91 [0.295, 1.525] | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Sociodemographic / socioeconomic factors (single-parent family, low parental education, family income, socioeconomic status) vs Absence of the factor / reference socioeconomic category Caries increment in permanent teeth · School children and adolescents (6-18 years) followed from primary dentition (baseline examination before 72 months of… Does Early Childhood Caries Increase Caries Development among School Children and Adolescents? A Systematic… (2022) | Inconsistent findings across studies; meta-analysis could not be performed as data could not be extracted. Single-parent family and low parental education were significant in one study (Saethre-Sundli 2020); higher… | 3 studies | Ungraded |
High-viscosity glass-ionomer cement (HVGIC) restoration (conventional restorative approach) vs Compomer, composite resin, or another HVGIC Treatment failure (annual failure rate) · Children with previously unrestored, vital carious lesions in primary teeth (no pulp therapy); aged 1.5-11 years · 12-36 months Clinical effectiveness of restorative materials for the restoration of carious primary teeth without pulp… (2022) | Annual failure rate (%) 2.9-25.6% | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Periodontal treatment: scaling and root planing (SRP) plus advice vs Community care: advice only All CVD-related death · People with cardiovascular disease and chronic periodontitis Periodontal therapy for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in people with periodontitis (2022) · Cochrane | SoF row 'All CVD-related death': Outcome not reported. Results 2.1.2: Not reported. | 0 studies | No studies |
Professional oral care vs Usual oral care Incidence of NHAP · Residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities · 8-30 months Oral care measures for preventing nursing home‐acquired pneumonia (2022) · Cochrane | Incidence of NHAP, follow-up 8-30 months, 5018 (5 studies), Low. Not pooled (individual and cluster-randomised designs, varying effect measures and follow-up). Component estimates: Bourigault HR 0.65 (0.29 to 1.46;… | 5 studies · 5018 participants | Low |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Food preference · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Randomized trials Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | SMD 0.38 [0.03, 0.72] | 8 studies · 1802 participants | Very low |
Intervention NR Difference in summary specificity (NMA, Analysis 2) · Electrical conductance vs Imaging Enamel Caries Detection and Diagnosis: An Analysis of Systematic Reviews. (2022) | Specificity difference (95% CrI) -0.16 [-0.45, 0.02] | NR | Ungraded |
Cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) vs No cleft lip and/or palate (non-CL/P) Care index (CI = f/[d+m+f]) in the primary dentition · Children in the primary dentition with non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) and comparable children without CL/P Caries in children with and without orofacial clefting: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Two out of three studies for which the CI could be calculated (Nagappan 2019; Veiga 2016) showed a higher CI for non-CL/P children demonstrating a higher proportion of extraction-based treatment in CL/P children… | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Caries assessment at enamel threshold (D(M)FS>0 or D(M)FT>0, enamel lesions included) vs None (descriptive prevalence review; subgroup analyses only) Caries prevalence · European adolescents aged 12–19 years · Age group: 12–15 years Dental caries at enamel and dentine level among European adolescents - a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Prevalence 0.73 [0.59, 0.87] | 24 studies | Ungraded |
Concentrated growth factor (CGF) and primary wound closure vs Primary wound closure only Healing of MRONJ (soft tissue healing) · Women with osteoporosis and established MRONJ · 6 months Interventions for managing medication‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (2022) · Cochrane | RR 1.38 [0.81, 2.34] | 1 study · 28 participants | Very low |
Intervention NR Pain during treatment · Hall Technique vs non-selective caries removal to hard dentine Minimal intervention dentistry for managing carious lesions into dentine in primary teeth: an umbrella review. (2022) | Proportion with no/mild pain 89% (HT) vs 78% (control) | 1 study | Ungraded |
Professional oral care vs Usual oral care Mortality (all-cause) · Residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities · 12-30 months Oral care measures for preventing nursing home‐acquired pneumonia (2022) · Cochrane | All-cause mortality, follow-up 12-30 months, 3764 (3 studies), Very low. Not pooled. Adachi RR 0.80 (0.40 to 1.58; 88); Juthani-Mehta HR 1.16 (0.88 to 1.53; 834); Zimmerman adjusted IRR 0.83 (0.61 to 1.12; 1606).… | 3 studies · 3764 participants | Very low |
Caries assessment at dentine threshold (cavitation into dentine) vs None (descriptive prevalence review; subgroup analyses only) Caries prevalence · European adolescents aged 12–19 years · Region: non-Scandinavian Dental caries at enamel and dentine level among European adolescents - a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Prevalence 0.57 [0.32, 0.81] | 6 studies | Ungraded |
Intervention NR Difference in summary sensitivity (NMA, Analysis 2) · Imaging vs Visual Enamel Caries Detection and Diagnosis: An Analysis of Systematic Reviews. (2022) | Sensitivity difference (95% CrI) -0.34 [-0.42, -0.23] | NR | Ungraded |
Fluorescence-based devices vs Reference standard (histology, operative excavation, or enhanced visual examination) Sensitivity for detecting enamel caries · Asymptomatic children or adults suspected of enamel caries (clinical studies); extracted teeth (in vitro studies) · Analysis 2: network meta-analysis (all studies evaluating >=2 index tests) Enamel Caries Detection and Diagnosis: An Analysis of Systematic Reviews. (2022) | Sensitivity 0.76 [0.68, 0.82] | 64 studies · 24567 participants | Low |
Fluoride-containing dental care products, primarily toothpaste vs Dietary fluoride sources in extremely fluoridated areas Contribution to total daily fluoride intake · Adults · Extreme fluoride in water (>1.5 mg/L) Fluoride Intake Through Dental Care Products: A Systematic Review. (2022) | Mean percentage contribution 3 | 1 study | Ungraded |
Antiretroviral therapy (any, including cART) vs No antiretroviral medication (treatment-naive) Parotid hypertrophy prevalence · Children and adolescents (<18 years) living with HIV (CLWH) Impact of Antiretroviral Therapy on Oral Health among Children Living with HIV: A Systematic Review and… (2022) | OR 0.01 [0.00, 0.05] | NR | Very low |
Baby-led weaning (BLW) vs Other models of complementary feeding (traditional CF) Overweight/obesity risk · Healthy, term-born, normal-birth-weight infants aged 4-24 months (breastfed and/or formula-fed) in Western… · Follow-up interval 18-78 months, BLW; observational studies Complementary Feeding Caregivers' Practices and Growth, Risk of Overweight/Obesity, and Other… (2022) | OR 0.37 [0.25, 0.55] | 3 studies · 969 participants | Very low |
Platelet-rich fibrin after bone surgery vs Bone surgery alone Healing of MRONJ (mucosal integrity and absence of infection) · People with established (manifest) MRONJ · 1 year Interventions for managing medication‐related osteonecrosis of the jaw (2022) · Cochrane | RR 1.05 [0.90, 1.22] | 1 study · 47 participants | Very low |
Hypnosis vs Relaxation Adverse events · People aged 12 years and over with painful TMD lasting 3 months or longer Psychological therapies for temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) (2022) · Cochrane | Abrahamsen 2011: one participant who received hypnosis was admitted to a psychiatric hospital during the intervention; per study authors this was unrelated to the study treatment. | 1 study | Ungraded |
Good brushing habits (>=2 daily tooth brushing) vs Children without dental caries Dental caries (association with good/>=2 daily brushing) · Children (deciduous and/or permanent dentition) in low- and middle-income countries Individual, Family, and Socioeconomic Contributors to Dental Caries in Children from Low- and Middle-Income… (2022) | OR 0.65 [0.46, 0.92] | 7 studies · 5446 participants | Ungraded |
Heal-all tissue patch vs No treatment Presence of dry socket · Adults (>18 years) having permanent tooth extraction (predominantly mandibular third molars) · Follow-up: median 7 days Local interventions for the management of alveolar osteitis (dry socket) (2022) · Cochrane | RR 0.08 [0.00, 1.32] | 1 study · 80 participants | Ungraded |
Traditional screening (referral card given if the inspecting dentist judges the child needs to see a dentist) vs No screening Dental attendance · School children (aged 4 to 15 years), primary and secondary schools in the UK and India · 3 to 4 months School dental screening programmes for oral health (2022) · Cochrane | Data not pooled; 6281 participants (4 RCTs); Very low. There was substantial heterogeneity, in part due to study design (3 cluster-RCTs and 1 individually randomised trial). We are unable to draw conclusions about this… | 4 studies · 6281 participants | Very low |
Single-surface ART with high-viscosity GIC vs Multi-surface ART with high-viscosity GIC Mean annual restoration failure rate · Children (2-9 years) with caries in posterior primary teeth · First 3 years, Single-surface Minimal intervention dentistry for managing carious lesions into dentine in primary teeth: an umbrella review. (2022) | Mean annual failure rate (%) 4.7% (van 't Hof 2006) to 5% (de Amorim 2018) | NR | Ungraded |
Periodontal treatment: scaling and root planing (SRP) plus advice vs Community care: advice only All cardiovascular events · People with cardiovascular disease and chronic periodontitis · 6 to 25 months Periodontal therapy for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in people with periodontitis (2022) · Cochrane | All cardiovascular events (Follow-up: 6 to 25 months): One study of 303 participants assessed this outcome; however, we considered data were unreliable as participants were followed up for different lengths of time,… | 1 study · 303 participants | Very low |
Prefabricated zirconia crowns (e.g., NuSmile, Zirkiz, Kinder Krown) vs Other crowns/restorations (stainless steel crowns, pre-veneered SSC, resin composite strip crowns, glass-fiber composite crowns) Recurrent caries (crowns free of recurrent caries) · Children with primary (deciduous) teeth requiring full-coverage crown restoration · 12 months Zirconia Crowns for Primary Teeth: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses. (2022) | RR 1.03 [0.96, 1.10] | 2 studies · 203 participants | Ungraded |
Placebo vs Silver diamine fluoride Oral health-related quality of life · Children with dental caries · Direct estimate Silver diamine fluoride and oral health-related quality of life: A review and network meta-analysis. (2022) | MD 0.03 [-0.16, 0.22] | 2 studies · 440 participants | Ungraded |
Full-mouth disinfection (FMD): scaling/root planing (subgingival instrumentation) of all quadrants within 24 hours plus adjunctive antiseptic (chlorhexidine) treatments (rinsing, pocket irrigation, tongue/tonsil brushing) vs Quadrant scaling and root planing (control): SRP of each quadrant in separate sessions at least one week apart Tooth loss · Adults with a clinical diagnosis of (chronic) periodontitis (1999 classification); studies of aggressive… Full‐mouth treatment modalities (within 24 hours) for periodontitis in adults (2022) · Cochrane | Tooth loss: None of the studies comparing FMD vs control reported tooth loss. | 0 studies | No studies |
Antiretroviral therapy (any, including cART) vs No antiretroviral medication (treatment-naive) Dental development and maturation · Children and adolescents (<18 years) living with HIV (CLWH) Impact of Antiretroviral Therapy on Oral Health among Children Living with HIV: A Systematic Review and… (2022) | One study (Trigueiro 2010) reported that dental age exceeded chronological age by 5.35 to 14.36 months (SE 3.03 to 15.86) in children on NRTI/PI/NNRTI regimens versus -0.67 months in those without medication; the… | 1 study | Very low |
Maternal education attainment vs Children without dental caries Dental caries (association with secondary/higher maternal education) · Children (deciduous and/or permanent dentition) in low- and middle-income countries · Secondary and higher education Individual, Family, and Socioeconomic Contributors to Dental Caries in Children from Low- and Middle-Income… (2022) | OR 0.96 [0.64, 1.44] | 7 studies · 6529 participants | Ungraded |
Not applicable vs Not applicable Mean DMFT score · Children aged 12 years (plus or minus one year) in Africa · Overall, publication-period analysis Prevalence of dental caries in the permanent dentition amongst 12-year-olds in Africa: a systematic review… (2022) | Mean DMFT 1.0900 [0.9143, 1.2657] | NR | Ungraded |
Fluoride-containing dental care products, primarily toothpaste vs Dietary fluoride sources in low-fluoridated areas Contribution to total daily fluoride intake · Children · Low fluoride in water (0.3-0.51 mg/L) Fluoride Intake Through Dental Care Products: A Systematic Review. (2022) | Mean percentage contribution 39 | 7 studies | Ungraded |
BLW vs Other models of complementary feeding (traditional CF) Infant weight-length gain (achievement of adequate weight) · Healthy, term-born, normal-birth-weight infants aged 4-24 months (breastfed and/or formula-fed) in Western… · Measured at 18-78 months of age, observational studies Complementary Feeding Caregivers' Practices and Growth, Risk of Overweight/Obesity, and Other… (2022) | OR 1.36 [0.18, 10.51] | 3 studies | Ungraded |
Antiretroviral therapy (any, including cART) vs No antiretroviral medication (treatment-naive) Oral hygiene status · Children and adolescents (<18 years) living with HIV (CLWH) Impact of Antiretroviral Therapy on Oral Health among Children Living with HIV: A Systematic Review and… (2022) | OR 0.73 [0.13, 4.26] | 0 studies | Ungraded |
Dental caries assessment (WHO/clinical diagnostic criteria; caries = DMFT>0) vs None (descriptive prevalence review; subgroup analyses by urban/rural status, country and year) Caries prevalence · 12-year-old children (permanent dentition) in Africa · Country: Nigeria Prevalence of dental caries in the permanent dentition amongst 12-year-olds in Africa: a systematic review… (2022) | Prevalence 0.13 [0.106, 0.163] | 2 studies | Ungraded |
Intervention NR Oral Candida carriage and salivary yeast concentration Impact of Antiretroviral Therapy on Oral Health among Children Living with HIV: A Systematic Review and… (2022) | no estimate extracted | 1 study | Ungraded |
Caries assessment at enamel threshold (D(M)FS>0 or D(M)FT>0, enamel lesions included) vs None (descriptive prevalence review; subgroup analyses only) Caries prevalence · European adolescents aged 12–19 years · Examination type: partial-mouth Dental caries at enamel and dentine level among European adolescents - a systematic review and meta-analysis. (2022) | Prevalence 0.81 [0.70, 0.91] | 5 studies | Ungraded |
Placebo vs Silver diamine fluoride Oral health-related quality of life · Children with dental caries · Network estimate Silver diamine fluoride and oral health-related quality of life: A review and network meta-analysis. (2022) | MD 0.03 [-0.16, 0.22] | 2 studies · 440 participants | Ungraded |
Common genetic variants genome-wide (GWAS; ~3.9 million SNPs with MAF > 5%) vs ECC-unaffected children (per-allele case-control association) Early childhood caries (ECC) - association at lead SNP rs8091366 (18:24715618; nearest gene(s) CHST9, KCTD1) · Children up to age 5-6 years (European / European non-Hispanic ancestry); 843 ECC-affected vs 2124 unaffected across 5… · Cross-sectional (ECC ascertained at the last dental exam before age 6), rs8091366 (18:24715618); effect/non-effect allele A/G; MAF 0.52; direction across 5 cohorts +++++ Association of Early Childhood Caries with Bitter Taste Receptors: A Meta-Analysis of Genome-Wide… (2022) | Z-score (Stouffer's combined Z, 5 cohorts) 4.476 | 5 studies · 2974 participants | Ungraded |
Primary school-based interventions (one or more of: school health policy, oral health education, healthy school environment, access to oral health services, community involvement) vs No intervention or usual practice/activities Dental caries measured by net increment in DMFS scores · Primary school children (aged 3-16 years) attending primary school in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) · Post-intervention; follow-up varied across studies (interventions ranged from <2 years to >=2 years and longer), Non-WHO-framework interventions Effectiveness of primary school-based interventions in improving oral health of children in low- and… (2022) | SMD -1.88 [-3.15, -0.60] | NR | Ungraded |
Silver diamine fluoride (SDF) vs Placebo Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL; C-ECOHIS) · Children with dental caries (ages ~2-13 years in the pooled trials) · Post-treatment Silver diamine fluoride and oral health-related quality of life: A review and network meta-analysis. (2022) | MD 0.03 [-0.16, 0.22] | 2 studies · 440 participants | Ungraded |
Food and nonalcoholic beverage marketing (exposure) vs No, less, or less powerful food marketing Dental caries · Children and adolescents aged 0-19 years · Nonrandomized studies Association of Food and Nonalcoholic Beverage Marketing With Children and Adolescents' Eating Behaviors and… (2022) | Vote counting: 1 of 2 studies (50%; 95% CI, 9%-90.5%) showed an association of public health harm; 1 moderate-quality study found a clear association with caries and 1 high-quality study found no association. | 2 studies | Very low |