This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the efficacy of fluorescence-based methods, visual inspections, and photographic visual examinations in initial caries detection. A literature search was undertaken in the PubMed and Cochrane databases. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed, and eligible articles published from 1 January 2009 to 30 October 2019 were included if they met the following criteria: they (1) assessed the accuracy of methods of detecting initial tooth caries lesions on occlusal, proximal, or smooth surfaces in both primary and permanent teeth (in clinical); (2) used a reference standard; (3) reported data regarding the sample size, prevalence of initial tooth caries, and accuracy of the methods. Data collection and extraction, quality assessment, and data analysis were conducted according to Cochrane standards Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2. Statistical analyses were performed using Review Manager 5.3 and STATA 14.0. A total of 12 eligible articles were included in the meta-analysis. The results showed that the sensitivity and specificity of fluorescence-based methods were 80% and 80%, respectively; visual inspection was measured at 80% and 75%, respectively; photographic visual examination was measured at 67% and 79%, respectively. We found that the visual method and the fluorescence method were reliable for laboratory use to detect early-stage caries with equivalent accuracy.
Keywords: fluorescence; initial tooth caries; photographic visual examination; visual inspection.