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U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Prevention of Dental Caries in Children Younger Than 5 Years: Screening and Interventions

About this resource:

Systematic Review

Source: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force

Last Reviewed: December 2021

Workgroups: Oral Health Workgroup

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends that primary care providers prescribe oral fluoride supplements for children ages 6 months to 5 years whose water supply doesn’t have enough fluoride. USPSTF also recommends that primary care providers put fluoride varnish on the baby teeth of infants and children once those teeth start to come in. In addition, USPSTF found insufficient evidence to assess whether the benefits of primary care providers regularly screening for tooth decay in children younger than 5 years outweigh the harms.

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Objectives related to this resource (1)

Reduce the proportion of children and adolescents with lifetime tooth decay — OH‑01
Little or no detectable change

Suggested Citation

1.

U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. (2021). Final Update Summary: Dental Caries in Children from Birth Through Age 5 Years: Screening. Retrieved from https://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/recommendation/prevention-of-dental-caries-in-children-younger-than-age-5-years-screening-and-interventions1