Sealant Recommendations Vary by Dentist Beliefs

Sealant Recommendations Vary by Dentist Beliefs

The dentist, practice, and patient characteristics that impact dentists’ decisions to recommend sealants as a caries-prevention measure were discussed during a March presentation at the American Association for Dental Research Annual Meeting and Exhibition in Los Angeles. Using a cross-sectional survey, 189 Japanese dentists from the Japanese Dental Practice-Based Research Network participated in the study. Each participant was presented three clinical photos of an occlusal surface of a mandibular first molar on a 12-year-old patient with high-caries risk, along with a description of the clinical case. It was found that a dentist’s belief in the effectiveness of caries risk assessment was closely associated with his or her likelihood to recommend sealants.

The survey demonstrated that 16% to 26% of participating dentists would recommend sealants for the 12-year-old patient. In the absence of dark brown pigmentation, 19% of dentists recommended sealants. Furthermore, 48% of dentists recommend sealants to more than 25% of patients between ages 6 and 18. This led the researchers to conclude that a dentist’s belief in the effectiveness of caries risk assessment was directly correlated with the decision to recommend sealants. While sealants are an effective tool in the caries-prevention armamentarium, according to the Pew Children’s Dental Campaign, they remain an underutilized technique.  

Hygiene Connection E-Newsletter

April 2016