Marginal integrity of restoration · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) showed no clear difference in marginal integrity of restorations compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece…; GRADE not reported.
3 findings from 1 review
Participant discomfort (vibration, smell, noise) · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
1 finding from 1 review
Pulpal inflammation or necrosis · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
It is very uncertain whether laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) changes pulpal inflammation or necrosis compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece… (very low certainty).
3 findings from 1 review
Restoration survival · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
It is very uncertain whether laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) changes durability of restoration compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece… (very low certainty).
3 findings from 1 review
Operator preference/fatigue in operator · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
1 finding from 1 review
Caries removal (clinical) · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) showed no clear difference in caries removal (clinical) compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece… (low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Duration of treatment · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) led to higher duration of treatment compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece…; GRADE not reported.
1 finding from 1 review
MD 0.90 [0.59, 1.21]
4 studies
GRADE not reported
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) vs Other caries removal systems (chemo-mechanical, sono-abrasion, or air-abrasion)
Outcome not reported · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
The review found no eligible studies for this question.
1 finding from 1 review
'Types of interventions' allowed comparison of laser with other caries-removal systems (chemo-mechanical, sono-abrasion, air-abrasion); no included study used such a comparator (all nine included trials compared laser…
Studies not reported
No studies found
Secondary caries · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
1 finding from 1 review
Participant preference · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
1 finding from 1 review
Three studies (Evans 2000; Liu 2006; Zhang 2013) reported participants' preference for future treatment. Zhang 2013: 37/53 children (72%) preferred laser, 10 (22%) drill. Liu 2006: 36/40 (90%) preferred laser, 4 (5%)…
3 studies
GRADE not reported
Episodes of pain (moderate or high pain; six-face rating scale) · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) may leads to lower episodes of pain (moderate or high pain; six-face rating scale) compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece… (low certainty).
1 finding from 1 review
Need for anaesthesia · Children, adolescents and adults with caries in deciduous and permanent teeth (age 3.5 to 84 years)
Laser (Er:YAG, Er,Cr:YSGG, or Nd:YAG) led to lower need for anaesthesia compared with conventional mechanical caries removal (standard drill; handpiece…; GRADE not reported.
2 findings from 1 review