ArticleInternational journal for equity in health2016
Equity in children's dental caries before and after cessation of community water fluoridation: differential impact by dental insurance status and geographic material deprivation.
Article in International journal for equity in health, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Water fluoridation for the prevention of dental caries.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Pooled it
- Systematic Review of Intervention Studies Aiming at Reducing Inequality in Dental Caries among Children.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Pooled it
- The impact of community water fluoridation cessation on health equity and service utilization: a global scoping review.BMC oral health · 2026Article
- Dental caries and fluorosis after 40 years of community water fluoridation in São Paulo, Brazil.Revista de saude publica · 2026Article
- Use of Amalgam and Composite Restorations Among 12-Year-Old Children in Israel: A Retrospective Study.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Dental Caries Prevention Programs in Low-Income Populations - A Systematic Review.Journal of pharmacy & bioallied sciences · 2025Article
- Community water fluoride cessation and rate of caries-related pediatric dental treatments under general anesthesia in Alberta, Canada.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2024Article
- Fluoridation cessation and children's dental caries: A 7-year follow-up evaluation of Grade 2 schoolchildren in Calgary and Edmonton, Canada.Community dentistry and oral epidemiology · 2022Article
- The Impact of Water Fluoridation on Medicaid-Eligible Children and Adolescents in Alaska.Journal of prevention (2022) · 2022Article
- Neighborhood Contexts and Oral Health Outcomes in a Pediatric Population: An Exploratory Study.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Strengthening the approach to oral health policy and practice in Canada.Paediatrics & child health · 2020Article
- In defense of a population-level approach to prevention: why public health matters today.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2019Article
- Identifying and critically examining government legislation relevant to children's dental caries in Calgary, Alberta, Canada: a health inequities lens.Journal of public health dentistry · 2019Article
- Consequences of community water fluoridation cessation for Medicaid-eligible children and adolescents in Juneau, Alaska.BMC oral health · 2018Article
- Blood Lead Levels and Dental Caries in U.S. Children Who Do Not Drink Tap Water.American journal of preventive medicine · 2018Article
- Fluoridation cessation: More science from Alberta.Community dentistry and oral epidemiology · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundOne of the main arguments made in favor of community water fluoridation is that it is equitable in its impact on dental caries (i.e., helps to offset inequities in dental caries). Although an equitable effect of fluoridation has been demonstrated in cross-sectional studies, it has not been studied in the context of cessation of community water fluoridation (CWF). The objective of this study was to compare the socio-economic patterns of children's dental caries (tooth decay) in Calgary, Canada, in 2009/10 when CWF was in place, and in 2013/14, after it had been discontinued.
methodsWe analyzed data from population-based samples of schoolchildren (grade 2) in 2009/10 and 2013/14. Data on dental caries (decayed, missing, and filled primary and permanent teeth) were gathered via open mouth exams conducted in schools by registered dental hygienists. We examined the association between dental caries and 1) presence/absence of dental insurance and 2) small area index of material deprivation, using Poisson (zero-inflated) and logistic regression, for both time points separately. For small-area material deprivation at each time point, we also computed the concentration index of inequality for each outcome variable.
resultsStatistically significant inequities by dental insurance status and by small area material deprivation were more apparent in 2013/14 than in 2009/10.
conclusionsResults are consistent with increasing inequities in dental caries following cessation of CWF. However, further research is needed to 1) confirm the effects in a study that includes a comparison community, and 2) explore possible alternative reasons for the findings, including changes in treatment and preventive programming.
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Registered trials
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