Caries recurrence after treatment under general anaesthesia for early childhood caries: a retrospective cohort study.

AIM: To evaluate rates of caries relapse and explore factors affecting relapse rates after comprehensive dental treatment under general anaesthesia (GA). METHODS: A retrospective cohort study of children </=6 years of age at the time of reference GA (RGA) who were in an anaesthetic low risk category [American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) classification 1 or 2], and had completed 36 months follow-up period was conducted. Patients' demographics and dental records were collected. Associations between relapse rate and different factors affecting relapse rates were evaluated. RESULTS: A total of 278 children with mean age of 47 +/- 14 months were included. Over 8 % of children had more than one GA, 88 % attended their post-operative follow-up appointment and 45 % returned for all recall appointments over 3 years. During the 3-year follow-up, the relapse rate was 22 %. ASA-2 children and those with less than full primary dentition present at the RGA were more than twice as likely to experience caries relapse as compared to ASA-1 children (OR = 2.46, 95 % CI 1.33-4.56) and those with mixed dentition present at the RGA (OR = 2.74, 95 % CI 1.27-5.91). CONCLUSION: ASA-2 health status and having less than a full primary dentition were major predictors of caries relapse after dental treatment under GA.