Oral Health in Children and Adolescents Aged 5 to 17 Years: Preventive Interventions

For each of the evidence gaps listed below, research must focus on preventive interventions that can be performed in nondental primary care settings and be inclusive of populations with a high prevalence of oral health conditions, including Asian, Black, Hispanic/Latino, Native American/Alaska Native, and Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander persons and persons with social determinants that contribute to disparities in oral health.

  1. Research is needed to develop primary care–based oral health risk assessment tools to accurately identify children aged 5 to 17 years at increased risk of oral health conditions.
  2. Research is needed to assess the effectiveness and harms of preventive interventions in the primary care setting.
    1. Research is needed to assess the effectiveness and harms of fluoride gel, fluoride varnish, sealants, silver diamine fluoride, and xylitol on oral health conditions.
    2. Research is needed to assess the effectiveness and harms of oral health education and behavioral counseling interventions performed by primary care clinicians on oral health outcomes. To assess their impact on study participants, identification of water fluoridation status and oral health behaviors and education is needed.
  3. Research is needed to identify the effectiveness of strategies that can be delivered in primary care settings to improve quality of life, function, or other clinically important oral health outcomes.

Research Taxonomy: For additional information onresearch needed to address these evidence gaps, see the Research Gaps Taxonomy table on the USPSTF website .

The USPSTF concludes that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of preventive interventions performed by primary care clinicians for oral health conditions, including dental caries, in asymptomatic children and adolescents aged 5 to 17 years.

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