Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate primary care physicians’ recommendation of fl uoride supplements based upon a child’s caries risk.
Methods: A representative sample of family physicians (FPs) and pediatricians (PDs) in the United States was mailed a letter and a questionnaire that described case scenarios of 2-year-old children—one with low and the other with high caries-risk—as well as questions about opinions on fluoride supplement use. The physicians’ opinions were compared with CDC experts’ consensus on the same scenarios. Results: The response rates were 43% for FPs and 52% for PDs. FPs and PDs had a high agreement level (76% and 80%, respectively) with CDC experts regarding the need for fluoride supplementation of the high-risk child. For a low risk child, all physicians showed a significantly lower level of agreement with the CDC experts (15% for FPs; 7% for PDs).
Conclusions: The majority of primary care physicians follow the current fluoride supplementation guideline without considering the caries risk status of a child. If caries risk status is to be used to tailor preventive regimens, then physicians need to be educated on how to identify children with the highest need for prevention. (Pediatr. Dent. 2007;29:23-31)
