The groups were balanced at baseline and no significant differences in caries prevalence or increment were displayed between the groups after 1 and 2 years, respectively. There was a reduced number of new pre-cavitated enamel lesions during the second year of the study (p = 0.05) but the decrease was not statistically significant. The secondary endpoints were unaffected by the varnish treatments.
Conclusions
Under the present conditions, biannual fluoride varnish applications in preschool children did not show significant caries-preventive benefits when provided as an adjunct to school-based supervised tooth brushing with 1000 ppm fluoride toothpaste.