What do systematic reviews say?

Carbopol (polyacrylic acid/acetate) spray vs Placebo spray

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Patient preference for active sprays vs placebo nearly attained significance (Chi2 7.259, df=3; P = 0.064); 15/43 participants expressed no desire to continue any spray after the trial.
  1 study · 43 participants
  GRADE not reported

Physostigmine gel (1.8 mg) vs Placebo gel

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Approximately fivefold increase in saliva secretion; mean AUC salivary volume 43.4 +/- 9.4 (physostigmine) vs 8.3 +/- 6.6 (placebo), P < 0.001. Adverse effects: 8 mild gastrointestinal upsets, 1 sweating.
  1 study · 17 participants
  GRADE not reported

Commercial mouthcare system (Biotene Oral Balance / Xerostom) vs Usual care or CMC-based control

Commercial mouthcare system (Biotene Oral Balance / Xerostom) led to higher xerostomia (VAS mouth dryness) compared with usual care or CMC-based control; GRADE not reported.

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  SMD 1.11 [0.33, 1.89]
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Commercial mouthcare system (Biotene Oral Balance / Xerostom) vs Bioxtra mouthcare system

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No difference between systems for overall xerostomia-related quality of life (15-item survey). Bioxtra rated better for taste; no difference for mouth 'feel'. Trial likely underpowered.
  1 study · 20 participants
  GRADE not reported

Pilocarpine lozenge (3 mg or 5 mg) vs placebo control

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes

  Single dose (up to 3 hours)
  Statistically significant increase in saliva production vs placebo (P <= 0.05); maximum salivary output 60 to 90 minutes post-lozenge; no data presented.
  1 study · 33 participants
  GRADE not reported

CMC spray / HCC spray / HCC gel vs Liquid margarine (and between each other)

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  HCC gel rated better than margarine for convenience, perceived value, minutes of relief and overall rating; no other significant between-group differences.
  1 study · 28 participants
  GRADE not reported

Intraoral device releasing Biotene Oral Balance gel vs Manually administered bolus of the same gel

Intraoral device releasing Biotene Oral Balance gel showed no clear difference in patient satisfaction compared with manually administered bolus of the same gel; GRADE not reported.

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Patient satisfaction scores favoured the gel bolus over the intraoral device (Analysis 3.4).
  1 study · 22 participants
  GRADE not reported

Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) spray vs Placebo (spray base without CMC / water)

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Patient preference evenly split between CMC spray and spray base.
  1 study · 15 participants
  GRADE not reported

Salinum (linseed) mouthwash vs Salinum plus chlorhexidine mouthwash

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Johansson 2001 (crossover, n=33, Sjogren's syndrome): both products improved oral dryness and chewing/swallowing; Salinum alone reduced speaking problems and burning mouth. Paired data not accounted for; no usable…
  1 study · 33 participants
  GRADE not reported

Intraoral device releasing Biotene Oral Balance gel vs Manually administered bolus of the same gel

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No difference between device and bolus in unstimulated whole saliva, oral microbial profile or generalised inflammation.
  1 study · 22 participants
  GRADE not reported

Mucin spray (Saliva Orthana) vs Placebo spray (base without mucin)

Mucin spray (Saliva Orthana) led to lower improvement in dry mouth (dichotomous) compared with placebo spray (base without mucin); GRADE not reported.

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Sweeney 1997 (parallel, n=31, terminal cancer): both sprays improved dry mouth symptoms but no statistically significant difference between mucin spray and placebo for improved dry mouth (Analysis 1.1; RR not…
  1 study · 31 participants
  GRADE not reported

Commercial mouthcare system (Biotene Oral Balance / Xerostom) vs Bioxtra mouthcare system

Biotene Oral Balance mouthcare system led to higher xerostomia (VAS mouth dryness) compared with bioxtra mouthcare system; GRADE not reported.

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  SMD 0.69 [0.08, 1.30]
  1 study · 20 participants
  GRADE not reported

OASIS moisturising mouthwash vs Experimental mouthwash formulation

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Shirodaria 2006 (crossover): OASIS reported to give a statistically significant improvement over subjects' normal remedies, but the report did not present the randomised OASIS-versus-experimental comparison; no data…
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

V6 chewing gum / mucin chewing gum vs Placebo chewing gum

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Aagaard 1992 (crossover, n=43): approximately 50% of participants had an increase in unstimulated whole saliva from all products; unclear how many completed the trial; no usable data.
  1 study · 43 participants
  GRADE not reported

V6 chewing gum / mucin chewing gum vs Placebo chewing gum

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Preference favoured mucin gum (61%) over V6 (21%) and placebo (5%).
  1 study · 43 participants
  GRADE not reported

CMC/sorbitol pre-moistened swabs vs Lemon glycerin swabs

• Interventions for the management of dry mouth: topical therapies 2011 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Patient preference favoured CMC/sorbitol (Chi2 10.89, df=1; P = 0.001).
  1 study · 20 participants
  GRADE not reported

Screening for domestic violence vs Different screening tool

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Domestic violence screening and intervention programmes for adults with dental or facial injury 2010 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No eligible randomised controlled trials were identified. The update search retrieved an additional 2129 references; after de-duplication this left 1381 potentially eligible studies, and after examination of titles and…
  0 studies
  No studies found

Screening for domestic violence vs No screening

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Domestic violence screening and intervention programmes for adults with dental or facial injury 2010 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No eligible randomised controlled trials were identified. The update search retrieved an additional 2129 references; after de-duplication this left 1381 potentially eligible studies, and after examination of titles and…
  0 studies
  No studies found

1-stage (non-submerged) implant placement vs 2-stage (submerged) implant placement

1-stage (non-submerged) implant placement showed no clear difference in aesthetics evaluated by dentists (soft tissue recession) compared with 2-stage (submerged) implant placement; GRADE not reported.

• Interventions for replacing missing teeth: 1- versus 2-stage implant placement 2009 · Cochrane All outcomes

  6 to 12 months after loading
  MD -0.20 [-0.67, 0.27]
  1 study · 29 participants
  GRADE not reported

1-stage (non-submerged) implant placement vs 2-stage (submerged) implant placement

1-stage (non-submerged) implant placement showed no clear difference in prosthesis failure compared with 2-stage (submerged) implant placement (moderate certainty).

• Interventions for replacing missing teeth: 1- versus 2-stage implant placement 2009 · Cochrane All outcomes

  6 to 12 months after loading
  RR 1.87 [0.33, 10.40]
  3 studies · 153 participants
  Moderate