Motivational interviewing for preventing early childhood caries: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This systematic review with meta-analysis was performed to assess whether motivational interviewing (MI) is effective in the prevention of early childhood caries (ECC) and to examine potential sources of heterogeneity.

Interventions based on motivational interviewing were considered eligible. The main outcome was new caries lesions (some studies included white-spot lesions in total count), and secondary outcomes included caregivers' oral health knowledge, home-care behaviours, plaque index, gingival index and fluoride varnish applications. Controls were any type of oral health education or negative controls without any specific intervention.

From a total of 1498 studies identified in the databases search, 1078 were assessed for eligibility by reading titles and abstracts, after removal of duplicates. Full-text screening was performed in 61 articles, with 18 reporting on 14 different studies included in the qualitative synthesis and 8 in the quantitative synthesis (four studies included new white-spot lesions in total count). Subgroup analysis was performed by the control group dmft/dmfs and the test for subgroup differences suggests that there is a subgroup effect (P = .06), so population caries experience modifies the effect of MI-based intervention. In populations with high caries experience, the MI-based approach proved preventing an average of 3.15 (95% CI: -6.14, -0.17) dmfs in young children. In samples with low caries experience, differences were smaller, since the caries levels were already lower (-0.31; 95% CI: -0.63, 0.00).

Motivational interviewing has the potential to modify knowledge and behaviours and reduce ECC with a more significant impact on children with high caries experience.