The available evidence does not support the practice of routinely recalling all patients every six months, according to a study in the Journal of the American Dental Association (May 2010, Vol. 141:5, pp. 527-539).
For the study, researchers from A.T. Still University and the Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health combed through the published research to find trials that examined recall intervals.
They found seven that met their criteria, including one randomized and two nonrandomized controlled trials. The randomized trial found no statistical differences in oral health between a group of patients recalled every 12 months for two years and a group recalled every 24 months.
One nonrandomized trial found a reduction in caries for patients who got prophylaxis and oral hygiene instructions every two to three months, versus a group recalled every year. The second nonrandomized trial found no difference in caries among patients recalled at three, six, or 18 months.
These trials were not designed well enough to be conclusive, the authors decided. But they reasoned that patients at low risk of caries might run a risk of getting more fillings than they needed. One piece of evidence for that was a cross-sectional study that found that the more often patients were recalled, the more restorations they had.
On the other hand, patients at high risk might not get the prophylaxis they need. So dental practitioners should recall patients more often when they are at high risk of caries and less often when they are at low risk, the authors concluded.
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