Dental News - Sealants not dentists' first choice for treating caries lesions in children

Dental Tribune International

Wed. 7 September 2011

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PHILADELPHIA, Pa, & CHICAGO, Ill., USA: American dentists are more likely to drill than seal non-cavitated caries lesions (NCCL) in children as recommended by the American Dental Association. According to a professional questionnaire conducted among a group of general practitioners and paedric dentists throughout the country, less than 50 per cent are following the organisation’s 2008 recommendations for the use of pit-and-fissure sealants.

In the survey, researchers from Temple University's Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry in Philadelphia found that approximately 40 per cent of dentists replied they would use sealants in absence of radiographic evidence of caries when confronted with photographs showing NCCL. Moreover, when radiographs were indicating caries in dentin, only 1 in 25 dentists were considering a conservative approach.

The researchers called on the ADA to develop new educational programmes to make conservative managament approaches more popular among dentists.

The ADA released its recommendations based on clinical evidence in 2008. Their use as a public health approach to complement clinical care is also recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Dental sealants have become less popular among dentists recently owing to decreasing coverage by insurance companies in the U.S.. New research has also suggested that resin sealants may increase patients' exposure to bisphenol A, a toxin organic compound also found in plastics.

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