Study designs of evaluations included in the review
Randomised clinical trials on study populations representative of the general population. The studies compared fluoride gel treatment versus no treatment or placebo treatment.
Specific interventions included in the review
Fluoride gel application. A variety of gel types were used, including 1.1% acidulated phosphate fluoride (APF), 1.23% APF, 1.1% sodium fluoride (NaF), 0.4% stannous fluoride (SnF2), 0.78% monofluorophosphate (MFP), and 0.4% amino fluoride (AmF). The gel was administered using a tray or brush, by professionals, 'self supervised' or self. The application frequency ranged from 1 to 360 applications per year.
Participants included in the review
The participants were children aged 6 to 15 years at the start of the study. The prevalence of decayed, missing and filled surfaces (DMFS) ranged from 0.7 to 10.1.
Outcomes assessed in the review
The outcome assessed was preventative fraction (PF), which measures the reduction in the incidence of caries with fluoride gel treatment relative to the incidence in the control group.
How were decisions on the relevance of primary studies made?
The studies for consideration were evaluated independently by two examiners.