Cariostatic and ultraconservative sealed restorations: nine-year results among children and adults.

The objective of this clinical study was to evaluate the long-term efficacy of placing sealed posterior composite restorations for arresting active caries. The tooth preparation for this bonded and sealed restoration was limited to placing a bevel in the enamel only, without the removal of the carious lesion. The radiographic and clinical performance of these ultraconservative sealed composite restorations placed over caries (CompS/C) was compared over a period of nine years with: 1) ultraconservative, localized sealed amalgam (AGS) restorations with no extension for prevention, and 2) traditional, unsealed amalgam restorations (AGU) with the usual extension for prevention outline form. Sealant retention with > 50 percent to 100 percent of the margins occurred in 64 percent of CompS/C and 82.5 percent of AGS restorations. After nine years the cumulative failure rates were 16 percent for CompS/C, 2.5 percent for AGS, and 17.1 percent for AGU restorations. Thus, the clinical performance of CompS/C restorations was slightly superior to that of the traditional AGU restorations. The AGS restorations were definitely superior to the traditional AGU restorations and to the CompS/C restorations in both children and adults alike. Complete sealant retention over CompS/C and AGS restorations was equivalent between children and adults (P = 0.14 and 0.74, respectively). A higher percentage of open margins in CompS/C restorations was seen, however, in children (17.4 percent) than adults (1.94 percent). This study has shown that Class I caries can be arrested by the CompS/C restoration.