Cochrane Review Group

Oral Health

430 systematic reviews in Oral Health ask 10,375 questions. 13% have no studies to answer them, 11.8% rest on very low certainty evidence and 3.5% reach moderate or high certainty.

Reviews

430

Questions

10,375

current versions

No studies

13%

Moderate or high

3.5%

No 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.

Search questions in Oral Health

Topics

Dental caries264 reviews

5,762 questionsNo studies 5.6% · High 0.7%

Oral and maxillofacial surgery43 reviews

866 questionsNo studies 21.7% · High 0.5%

Orthodontics43 reviews

830 questionsNo studies 22.4% · High 0.4%

Oral medicine and oral cancer34 reviews

1,325 questionsNo studies 12.4% · High 0.1%

Periodontology32 reviews

793 questionsNo studies 18.7% · High 1.5%

Endodontics and dental trauma25 reviews

664 questionsNo studies 16.7% · High 0.2%

Implants and prosthodontics23 reviews

581 questionsNo studies 15% · High 0%

Dental public health and special care13 reviews

288 questionsNo studies 25.3% · High 0%

Pain control and patient management11 reviews

342 questionsNo studies 46.2% · High 1.2%

Temporomandibular disorders and sleep11 reviews

271 questionsNo studies 25.8% · High 0%

Other oral health10 reviews

264 questionsNo studies 17% · High 3.4%

Esthetic dentistry6 reviews

141 questionsNo studies 11.3% · High 0%

Thinnest evidence

All no studies and very low questions

Question	Effect	Evidence	Status / GRADE
Partial pulpotomy vs Full (complete) pulpotomy Patient- and clinical-reported outcomes (tooth survival, clinical/radiographic success, pain) · Asymptomatic permanent teeth with deep caries (no symptoms) The effectiveness of partial pulpotomy compared with full pulpotomy in managing deep caries in vital… (2025)	no estimate extracted	0 studies	No studies
Calcium vs Control Immediate (24 h) resin-dentin bond strength (MPa) · permanent human teeth with artificial caries-affected dentin · 24 h, Etch-and-Rinse; chemical ACAD Biomimetic Remineralization Strategies for Dentin Bond Stability-Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis. (2025)	MD -0.508 [-8.207, 7.191]	3 studies	Very low
Children with dental caries vs Children without dental caries (caries-free) Mean corpuscular volume (MCV) · Children and adolescents (0-18 years; most included reviews focused on <6 years) Association Between Iron Deficiency Anemia and Dental Caries in Children: A Systematic Umbrella Meta-Analysis. (2025)	MD -1.96 [-4.02, 0.10]	3 studies	Very low
HIV infection with antiretroviral therapy (ART/HAART) vs HIV-negative individuals Dental caries (presence/absence) · Children and adolescents under 18 years with HIV · Not specified (cross-sectional), Cross-sectional studies Association between antiretroviral therapy and dental caries in children and adolescents with HIV: a… (2025)	OR 2.04 [1.21, 3.42]	6 studies · 2206 participants	Very low
HIV infection with antiretroviral therapy (ART/HAART) vs HIV-negative individuals Dental caries severity (dmft index, primary dentition) · Children and adolescents under 18 years with HIV · Not specified (cross-sectional), Cross-sectional studies; dmft index Association between antiretroviral therapy and dental caries in children and adolescents with HIV: a… (2025)	MD 0.92 [-0.09, 1.93]	5 studies · 1502 participants	Very low
Cavity liner (calcium hydroxide, glass-ionomer cement, resin-modified calcium silicate/TheraCal LC, hydraulic calcium silicate/MTA or Biodentine, flowable composite, or other liner material) vs No cavity liner or a different liner material Treatment failure · Patients with deep caries lesions in mature or immature permanent (posterior) teeth, with no symptoms or reversible… · >=12 months Efficacy of different cavity liners compared to no cavity lining in managing deep caries in vital permanent… (2025)	No significant difference; 96.5% of treated teeth remained vital	12 studies · 1184 participants	Very low
Cavity liner (calcium hydroxide, glass-ionomer cement, resin-modified calcium silicate/TheraCal LC, hydraulic calcium silicate/MTA or Biodentine, flowable composite, or other liner material) vs No cavity liner or a different liner material Postoperative hypersensitivity · Patients with deep caries lesions in mature or immature permanent (posterior) teeth, with no symptoms or reversible… · 7 days to 3 months Efficacy of different cavity liners compared to no cavity lining in managing deep caries in vital permanent… (2025)	No significant difference; minimal pain reported	9 studies · 1000 participants	Very low
Secondary (passive/secondhand) smoking exposure during childhood vs No secondary smoking exposure Caries prevalence (early childhood caries) · Preschool children aged <=71 months (caries outcome assessed at 3-6 years) · Caries prevalence at 3-6 years, Overall Secondary Smoking and Early Childhood Caries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. (2025)	OR 1.77 [1.57, 2.01]	11 studies · 14,794 participants	Very low
Cavity liner (calcium hydroxide, glass-ionomer cement, resin-modified calcium silicate/TheraCal LC, hydraulic calcium silicate/MTA or Biodentine, flowable composite, or other liner material) vs No cavity liner or a different liner material Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) · Patients with deep caries lesions in mature or immature permanent (posterior) teeth, with no symptoms or reversible… · >=6 months Efficacy of different cavity liners compared to no cavity lining in managing deep caries in vital permanent… (2025)	no estimate extracted	0 studies	No studies
quantitative light-induced fluorescence (QLF) vs reference standard detection of proximal caries · primary teeth with proximal caries · primary dentition Diagnostic accuracy of quantitative light-induced fluorescence in detecting caries of various types and… (2025)	no estimate extracted	0 studies	No studies
HIV infection with antiretroviral therapy (ART/HAART) vs HIV-negative individuals Dental caries severity (DMFT index, permanent dentition) · Children and adolescents under 18 years with HIV · Not specified (cross-sectional), Cross-sectional studies; DMFT index Association between antiretroviral therapy and dental caries in children and adolescents with HIV: a… (2025)	MD 0.60 [-0.53, 1.72]	4 studies · 1390 participants	Very low
Intervention NR Tooth survival · - The effectiveness of partial pulpotomy compared with full pulpotomy in managing deep caries in vital… (2025)	no estimate extracted	0 studies	No studies