A five-year evaluation of fissure sealants applied by dental assistants

The aim of this study was to evaluate if sealings of fissures is a preventive method appropriate for delegation to auxiliary personnel. After a two-day course, giving theoretical as well as practical knowledge, 77 dental assistants working at twelve dental clinics, sealed 3218 first and second permanent molars in children. The material used was the light-cured resin Delton Opaque(R). The sealings were examined once a year by the childrens ordinary dentists, using internationally accepted criteria. The result showed a total retention rate of 91% after one year and 69% after five. There were differences in success rate between the clinics, the majority demonstrating a five-year total retention rate between 70 and 94%. It was evident that the retention of sealings was influenced by the age of the children but not by the position of teeth in the mouth. The main part of failures appeared during the first year (35%) and failures were essentially due to fractures (64%). Eight percent of all teeth present at the end of the five-year period had become carious. The dental assistants sealed the fissures without any assistance and none of them had any previous experience of fissure sealings. In our opinion, sealing of fissures is a method well suited for delegation to dental assistants after proper education but should be followed up, as the success rate showed a great variation.