Two-year Follow-up of 11,000 Dental Sealants in First Permanent Molars in the Saskatchewan Health Dental Plan

Abstract

The follow-up study examines the clinical success of sealing pits and fissures of permanent molars in a large auxiliary-based children's dental care program. The success of sealant use after one and two years was assessed using the following independent variables, (1) total number of sealants, (2) tooth location, (3) age of patient, and (4) initial caries status. The computerized records of 4,525 patients with 11,237 sealants were analyzed using the Statistical Analysis System (SAS). Success occurred where no further treatment services were performed or where the tooth was resealed. The success rate after one year was 98.7 percent and after two years 97.0 percent. In considering tooth location, number of sealants per patient, age of patient, and initial caries status, the success rate varied only 2.2 percent over the two years.