A Pilot Study to Investigate the Use of Pit and Fissure Sealants in Children Requiring Caries Related Dental Extractions Under a Chair General Anaesthetic

Objective:

To evaluate,

1. The ability to recruit based on failure to meet exclusion criteria, declining to participate or other reasons and retention rates based on subsequent withdrawals.

2. Feasibility and acceptability of placing sealants in this setting, based on compliance with the intervention.

3. Sealant retention rates based on the proportion of sealants that were fully intact, partially intact or lost after 24 months.

4. Two-year incidence of caries in permanent molars that were sound and suitable for sealants at the time of the pre-GA assessment, based on the proportion of children with:

5. Experience of caries into dentine in at least one permanent molar

6. Untreated caries into dentine in at least one permanent molar

7. Oral health related Quality of Life (OHRQoL) two years following caries related extractions under GA, based on the Child-Oral Impacts on Daily Performances (Child-OIDP) scale and separate questions relating to specified oral symptoms.

8. Oral health support provided by referring practitioners, within the 2 years following the dental GA, based on,

9. Structured interview questionnaire to record parents' experience of preventive advice and treatment received, following the GA extractions

10. Sealants identified at follow up that were not present at baseline or provided as part of the study