Prevalence of dental caries in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Dental caries and type 1 diabetes are responsible for a large burden of global disease; however, the exact prevalence of dental caries among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes remains controversial, and no quantitative meta-analysis exists. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis to evaluate the prevalence of dental caries among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. METHODS: We performed a systematic search strategy using PubMed, EMBASE and China National Knowledge Infrastructure for relevant studies investigating the prevalence of dental caries in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes from July 1971 until December 2018. The pooled prevalence with 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) and subgroup analyses were calculated using a random effects model. RESULTS: After screening 358 non-duplicated articles, a total of 10 articles involving 538 individuals were included. The overall prevalence of dental caries among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes was 67% (95% CI: 0.56–0.77%; I(2) = 83%). The prevalence was highest in South America (84%) and lowest in diabetic patients with good metabolic control (47%). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of dental caries was high among children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Screening and preventive treatment should be included in dental clinical routines for diabetic children and adolescents, especially in those with poor metabolic control. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s12903-019-0903-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.