What do systematic reviews say?

One-to-one dietary intervention aimed at preventing tooth erosion (e.g., reducing consumption of acidic/carbonated drinks) vs No dietary advice, or different dietary advice

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes
  There were no studies concerned with dietary change aimed at preventing tooth erosion.
  0 studies
  No studies found

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and… showed no clear difference in plaque indices (permanent and deciduous teeth) compared with no intervention or delayed intervention (non-intervention control;… (low certainty).

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  3 to 15 months
  SoF (Plaque indices, follow-up 3 to 15 months): 'All 3 RCTs showed a reduction in plaque in the intervention group compared to control group'; 827 participants (3 RCTs); GRADE low; comment 'Data not suitable for…
  3 studies · 827 participants
  Low

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  15 months
  PF 0.65 [0.12, 1.18]
  1 study · 60 participants
  Low

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Worthington 2001 reported changes in oral health knowledge and skills: improvement was apparent in both intervention and control groups at the 4-month follow-up (phase one) but greater in the intervention group (34%…
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Worthington 2001 found no change in reported dental visits over the course of the programmes, with 97% of children at baseline reporting visiting the dentist every 2 years.
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No other behavioural outcomes (e.g. objective toothbrush tracking or food-wrapper collection) were measured by the four included studies.
  0 studies
  No studies found

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No study reported any adverse events.
  0 studies
  No studies found

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 years
  PF 0.49
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Worthington 2001: few children had problems identifying foods containing sugar; only 15% of intervention and 19% of control participants reported routinely consuming sugary snacks on arriving home from school; snacking…
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Primary school-based behavioural intervention (both oral hygiene and dietary components) vs No treatment (or delayed treatment)

• Primary school‐based behavioural interventions for preventing caries 2013 · Cochrane All outcomes
  Worthington 2001 reported children's brushing frequency: almost all children (99%) at baseline reported twice daily brushing, and this level was maintained across all groups throughout the intervention (in baseline…
  1 study
  GRADE not reported

Any topical or systemic intervention (topical/systemic steroids, ciclosporin, tacrolimus, retinoids, anti-malarials, biologics, phototherapy, surgery) vs Placebo, no treatment, another active intervention, or a different dose of the same intervention

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Interventions for erosive lichen planus affecting mucosal sites 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes
  No studies reported this outcome.
  0 studies
  No studies found

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 52% (130) versus 53% (131) at follow-up (baseline 41% versus 44%). No significant change.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 86% (215) intervention versus 83% (205) control at follow-up (baseline 74% versus 77%). No significant change.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 77% (193) versus 75% (185) at follow-up (baseline 71% versus 69%). No significant change.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  4 years
  Mean (95% CI) DMFS increment after 4 years: intervention 2.56 (2.07 to 3.05) versus control 4.60 (3.99 to 5.21); significant difference favouring the intervention (P<0.0001; non-overlapping CIs). No between-group point…
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported
• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 years
  Mean (95% CI) DMFS increment after 2 years: intervention 1.86 (1.50 to 2.21) versus control 2.44 (2.12 to 2.77); significant difference favouring the intervention (P<0.05, comparing intervention and control). No…
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 71% (178) versus 68% (168) at follow-up (baseline 69% versus 65%). No significant change.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 77% (193) versus 81% (200) at follow-up (baseline 83% versus 74%, a significant baseline difference). No significant change at follow-up.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  Table 2: 87% (218) versus 86% (212) at follow-up (baseline 81% versus 87%). No significant change.
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary counselling (snacking timing, regular meals, fermentable carbohydrates) plus toothbrushing counselling, delivered by trained dental hygienists (a multi-intervention) vs Basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics

Individually designed, patient-centred preventive programme: dietary… led to higher using xylitol products more than 3 times per day compared with basic prevention offered as standard in public dental clinics; GRADE not reported.

• One‐to‐one dietary interventions undertaken in a dental setting to change dietary behaviour 2012 · Cochrane All outcomes

  2 to 4 years
  RR 1.32 [1.04, 1.68]
  1 study · 497 participants
  GRADE not reported

Gamified oral health interventions (mobile apps, serious games, augmented reality, game-based education) vs Conventional or traditional oral health education, or non-gamified interventions (comparator varied; several studies were single-arm/uncontrolled)

Gamified interventions appear to improve oral hygiene behaviors (brushing habits, preventive dental visits) in children, but the evidence is narrative and ungraded.

• The Application of Gamification in Children's Oral Health Management: Systematic Review. 2025 All outcomes

  Post-intervention (predominantly short-term; long-term follow-up in a minority of studies) · School-based settings, specialized dental clinics, and home-based environments
  A gesture-based motion-capture game enhanced brushing independence and skill retention (P<.001) [Kang 2021]; 58.8% of caregivers reported their children brushed more often when using gamified applications [France…
  Studies not reported
  GRADE not reported