This paper provides recommendations for dentists for the treatment of dental caries in children, with an emphasis on early childhood caries (ECC), primary teeth, and occlusal surfaces in permanent teeth. A consensus workshop followed by an e-Delphi consensus process was conducted with an expert panel nominated by the European Organization for Caries Research (ORCA) and European Federation of Conservative Dentistry (EFCD)/German Association of Conservative Dentistry (DGZ) boards. Based on 3 systematic reviews and a nonsystematic literature search, recommendations were developed. The caries decline has led to a more polarized disease distribution in children and adolescents along social gradients which should be taken into account when managing the caries process at all levels, such as the individual, the group, or a population. The control or reduction of caries activity is the basis for successful caries management. In children, caries management requires adequate daily oral hygiene and fluoride application via toothpaste, ensured by caregivers, and especially for ECC prevention an emphasis on sugar intake reduction is needed. These noninvasive interventions are also suitable to arrest or control initial or even cavitated dentine caries lesions in the absence of irreversible pulpitis. Fluoride varnish or silver diammine fluoride can be added as supplementary agents. In pits and fissures, composite resin materials can be used as preventive sealants and for defect-oriented minimally invasive restorations. In primary molars, preformed metal crowns are more successful than multisurface fillings, especially in caries-active patients. With persisting high caries activity, multiple lesions, and limited cooperation, caries control should consist of robust measures with high success rates, even including extraction in selected cases. This applies especially to treatments performed under general anesthesia.

The most frequently used measuring instrument for determination of dental fear and anxiety (DFA) in children nowadays is the Dental Subscale of the Children's Fear Survey Schedule (CFSS-DS). In this study we wanted to explore the reliability and validity of CFSS-DS scale in Bosnian children patients' sample. There were 120 patients in the study, divided in three age groups (8, 12, and 15 years of age), with 40 patients in each group. Original CFSS-DS scale was translated into Bosnian language, and children's version of a scale was used. The high value of the Cronbach's coefficient of internal consistency (α=0.861) was found in the entire scale. Four factors were extracted by screen-test method with Eigen values higher than 1, which explained 63.79% variance of results. CFSS-DS scale is reliable and valid psychometric instrument for DFA evaluation in children in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The differences between our research and those of others may appear due to many factors.

Objectives To provide consensus recommendations on how to intervene in the caries process in adults, specifically proximal and secondary carious lesions. Methods Based on two systematic reviews, a consensus conference and followed by an e-Delphi consensus process were held with EFCD/ORCA/DGZ delegates. Results Managing an individual's caries risk using non-invasive means (oral hygiene measures including flossing/interdental brushes, fluoride application) is recommended, as both proximal and secondary carious lesions may be prevented or their activity reduced. For proximal lesions, only cavitated lesions (confirmed by visual-tactile, or radiographically extending into the middle/ inner dentine third) should be treated invasively/restoratively. Non-cavitated lesions may be successfully arrested using noninvasive measures in low-risk individuals or if radiographically confined to the enamel. In high-risk individuals or if radiographically extended into dentine, for these lesions, additional micro-invasive (lesion sealing and infiltration) treatment should be considered. For restoring proximal lesions, adhesive direct restorations allow minimally invasive, tooth-preserving preparations. Amalgams come with a lower risk of secondary lesions and may be preferable in more clinically complex scenarios, dependent on specific national guidelines. In structurally compromised (especially endodontically treated) teeth, indirect cuspal coverage restorations may be indicated. Detection methods for secondary lesions should be tailored according to the individual's caries risk. Avoiding false positive detection and over-treatment is a priority. Bitewing radiographs should be combined with visualtactile assessment to confirm secondary caries detections. Review/refurbishing/resealing/repairing instead of replacing partially defective restorations should be considered for managing secondary caries, if possible. Conclusions An individualized and lesion-specific approach is recommended for intervening in the caries process in adults. Clinical significance Dental clinicians have an increasing number of interventions available for the management of dental caries. Many of them are grounded in the growing understanding of the disease. The best evidence, patients' expectations, clinicians' expertise, and the individual clinical scenario all need to be considered during the decision-making process.

For an Organisation for Caries Research/European Federation of Conservative Dentistry consensus, this systematic review is aimed to assess the question of how to manage the caries process in the case of early childhood caries (ECC). Medline via PubMed was searched systematically regarding management of ECC. First priority was existing systematic reviews or randomized clinical trials otherwise cohort studies dealing with management of ECC, primarily with carious anterior teeth. After data extraction, the potential risk of bias was estimated depending on the study types, and the level of evidence was evaluated. Regarding management of ECC, results are presented for silver diamine fluoride (SDF, n = 5), nonoperative caries management (NOCM, n = 10), and restorative approaches (RA, n = 8) separately, as different kinds of studies with different levels of evidence were found for the different aspects in the management of ECC. The 5 systematic reviews on SDF showed a high potential for arrest of ECC on a high level of evidence. In NOCM, a low level of evidence for a moderate effect of fluoride varnish in arresting or remineralizing, especially non-cavitated lesions, was assessed. For RA in carious anterior upper primary teeth, a low level of evidence was found for higher failure rates of glass ionomer cement and composite fillings than composite strip crowns even if placed under general anaesthesia and especially compared to other crowns (stainless steel and zirconia). In conclusions, ECC may be managed successfully with nonoperative (SDF, regular fluoride application) and moderately well with operative approaches, but the decision is affected by many other variables such as pulpal involvement, the child's cooperation, or a general anaesthesia setting.

Non-invasive caries treatment is a major focus in modern dentistry. The present study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of monomeric self-assembling peptide P 11-4 (SAP P 11-4) in combination with fluoride varnish or polymeric self-assembling peptide matrix (SAPM) in treatment of non-cavitated occlusal caries. Ninety children and adolescents were included in this randomized, gold-standardcontrolled clinical trial. Test Group 1 received SAP P 11-4 and twice fluoride varnish at baseline and Day 180, Test Group 2 received SAP P 11-4 on baseline and twice weekly SAPM (home-application), and Control Group received fluoride varnish on baseline and Day 180. Caries progression was measured by laser fluorescence, Nyvad Caries Activity, ICDAS-II-codes, and investigator assessments. Laser fluorescence changes demonstrated superior results for Test Group 1 and 2, as values decreased compared to an increase for the Control Group (p < 0.0005). ICDAS-II codes at Day 360 showed partial regression for Test Group 1 (6.7%) and Test Group 2 (20.0%) and partial progression for Control Group (23.3%) (p < 0.01). Nyvad Caries Activity yielded superior caries inactivation for Test Groups, compared to Control Group (p = 0.002). This trial showed that SAP P 11-4, applied either in combination with fluoride varnish or twice weekly SAPM, was a superior treatment for early caries compared to fluoride varnish alone. Caries levels have significantly decreased over the past decades, partially due to the introduction of fluoride in various forms 1. However, despite the promising efforts and results worldwide, caries levels have remained high, and caries is still the most common disease worldwide 2. Recent efforts to lower caries levels have focused on treating early carious lesions non-invasively, as there is consensus that only early intervention, prior to cavitation, can lead to a regression of the caries to a more healthy state 3,4. Novel therapeutics have been called for, and promising approaches are based on biomimetic research and development. Biomimetic concepts fall into two categories, either based on amelogenin or derivatives thereof, or on rationally designed and screened systems 5,6. There is substantial research in the field, yet most of it is in vitro-based. The exceptions are recent clinical investigations of the rationally designed self-assembling peptide P 11-4 applied either in its monomeric form (SAP P 11-4) 5,6 or its polymeric form as a self-assembled peptide matrix (SAPM). This is the first clinical trial investigating the combined effect of SAP P 11-4 and SAPM in treatment of early carious lesions. SAP P 11-4 has been systematically investigated 7. The self-assembling peptide was rationally designed to provide favourable physicochemical characteristics for nucleation of hydroxyapatite (HA) on the surface of the formed fibres of the 3D matrix 8,9. The mechanism of action of SAP P 11-4 in the remineralization of enamel was proposed early on and has been proven since 10,11. When monomeric SAP P 11-4 is applied onto th...