Multicenter RCT on intensive caries prevention for children undergoing dental general anaesthesia: Intensive caries prevention for children undergoing dental general anesthesia

Objectives: Early childhood caries is a persistent problem often leading to dental treatment under general anesthesia (GA). Thus, this study investigated the effect of two additional individual caries prevention appointments before and after GA. Materials and Methods: In this multi-center, 2-arm randomized, controlled clinical trial, 408 children (age 2-5 years, mean 4.2 +/- 1.04) intended for GA were recruited and randomly assigned to the intervention and control groups with or without two additional intensive oral hygiene appointments before and after the GA. At baseline and at 6-/12-months follow-ups, approximal plaque index (API), gingival sulcus bleeding index (SBI), caries experience (dmft/s) and initial caries were recorded. Results: Participants in test group and control group (ITT; n = 161 vs. n = 147) as well as drop-outs in test and control groups (n = 40 vs. n = 58) showed no statistical significant difference in baseline characteristics. Test and control groups showed equivalent baseline oral health parameters (API: 78 and 77%, SBI: 22.6 and 23.5%, dmft: 8.5 and 8.2, respectively), which continuously improved during the study. The test group exhibited statistically significant greater improvement (API: 42%, SBI: 7%) than the control (API: 54%, OR: 0.48; P = 0.003; SBI: 12%, OR=0.44; P = 0.005). Due to the robust rehabilitation with predominantly stainless steel crowns and extractions, caries incidence was minimal and, therefore, without statistical significance (mean increase dt, test: 0.5, control: 0.6; P = 0.68), which was also true for new initial carious lesions (mean increase test: 0.8 vs. control: 0.9; P = 0.55). Conclusions: Additional preventive sessions for children undergoing treatment under GA improved their oral hygiene parameters signifiqantly. Clinical significance: Intensive caries prevention appointments for children receiving dental treatment under GA improved their oral hygiene and might reduce their caries risk.