Prevalence of dental floss use in deciduous dentition: A systematic review and meta‐analysis. Issue 1 (15th August 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Nascimento, Edite Barbeitos; Rodrigues, Rita; Manso, Maria Conceição
• Is Part Of: International journal of dental hygiene. Volume 21:Issue 1(2023)
• Page Start: 116
• Page End: 127
• Publication Date: 2022-08-15
• Subjects: deciduous dentition -- deciduous tooth -- dental care -- dental floss -- interdental cleaning devices -- oral hygiene; Dental hygiene -- Periodicals; Dental hygienists -- Periodicals; 617.60105
• DOI: 10.1111/idh.12611
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1601-5029

Abstract

Abstract: Objectives: Adherence to the daily use of dental floss in childhood is recommended by various international health institutions/organizations. This systematic review (PROSPERO number CRD42020205232) aims to evaluate the prevalence of dental floss use in deciduous dentition. Materials and methods: A systematic review was conducted in six databases (B‐on, Cochrane Library, PubMed, Scielo, Science Direct and Web of Science) up to December 2020. The CoCoPop mnemonic allowed for obtaining 2333 articles and resulted in the inclusion of 7 observational studies that evaluated the prevalence of dental floss use (primary outcome) in children up to 6 years old. The Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal checklist was used to evaluate the risk of bias, showing that most articles presented good quality. Meta‐analyses were performed using the proportion of dental floss use (yes or once/day) and the random effects model. Results: The meta‐analysis showed a prevalence of dental floss use of only 12.60% (95% CI: 7.69%–18.52%) based on studies with high heterogeneity of results (I 2 = 94.75%; 95% CI: 91.44%–96.78%). Six of the seven studies showed that more than 70% of children never used dental floss. Conclusions: A low prevalence of dental floss use was observed in children up to 6 years old. Given the diversity of evaluating the use of dental floss, different options should be the target of standardization in future studies.