School based oral health education

Data sources: The methodology followed the Cochrane Handbook for systematic reviews of interventions with MEDLINE/PubMed, CENTRAL, Embase and LILACS databases searched. Publication date was limited to 1995-2015 with no restriction on language.

Study selection: Two independent reviewers selected randomised controlled clinical trials involving oral health education provided by a dental care professional to children aged between five and 18 years old within a school setting. Eligible studies were those which had outcomes including caries, plaque accumulation, gingivitis, toothache or tooth loss. Randomisation was at group (school and/or classroom) or individual level. The control groups were not provided with an educational programme on oral health, however they could have been given an action that belonged to the school's curricular framework.

Data extraction and synthesis: The title and abstract of each study was reviewed and critically assessed by two independent reviewers. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Handbook. Studies where the data of interest were presented in charts or were of dichotomous data were not included in meta-analysis.

Results: Twelve studies were included in this systematic review. Five studies showed plaque level reduction in the intervention groups and two studies found no effect of the interventions on gingivitis. There was insufficient evidence on effectiveness of the interventions in reducing dental caries.

Conclusions: Traditional oral health educational actions were effective in reducing plaque in the short-term, but not gingivitis. There was no long-term evidence regarding the effectiveness of traditional oral health educational actions in the school environment on preventing plaque accumulation, gingivitis and dental caries in schoolchildren.