Fluoride Varnish

This manual is designed to help non-oral-health professionals implement fluoride-varnish application for infants, children, and adolescents ages 6 months to 21 years who are enrolled in Massachusetts’ Medicaid program. The manual includes instructions on how to complete the online Smiles for Life training, which is required for health professionals to apply fluoride varnish for this population. It also discusses how to begin using fluoride varnish in a practice as well as how to keep fluoride varnish notes and how to bill for fluoride varnish application. Basic information about fluoride varnish application and information to share with parents and other caregivers is included.

• Link
• Program Website

This brief provides an overview of state-level policies that can support community-level actions to help ensure that communities have access to comprehensive oral health care, as well as federal policies that support the availability of minimally invasive care (MIC). State-level policy considerations discussed include maximizing Medicaid coverage for MIC (coverage of fluoride treatments, reimbursement for teledentistry, and risk management and individualized care); improving private coverage of MIC; and workforce considerations. Federal-level policy considerations discussed include mandatory Medicaid adult benefits, federal standardization of essential health benefits, and comprehensive Medicare dental benefits.

• PDF

This handout provides information for adults, including pregnant women, about how fluoride varnish can make their teeth more resistant to tooth decay. The handout explains what fluoride varnish is and discusses its safety. It also addresses things to avoid after it is applied to teeth, how long it lasts, how often it should be applied, and whether it is covered by dental insurance. The sheet is written in simple language and is available English and in Spanish. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]

• English
• Spanish

This brief discusses reasons for allowing medical assistants, parents, and others in New York to apply fluoride varnish (FV) to children’s teeth. It presents the problem and background information and discusses why applying FV is an underused strategy for preventing tooth decay among children in the state. It also shares opportunities for increasing the number of children in New York who receive FV applications. A proposal for promoting FV use in New York is included.

• PDF

This report makes a case for Medicaid reimbursement for fluoride varnish education and application for children age 3–6, pregnant women, and new mothers in Illinois. It provides background information on oral health during the perinatal period and in childhood and presents current Medicaid reimbursable FV-related services in the state by health professional type (i.e., oral health professionals, non-oral-health professionals). It also addresses the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to improving the oral health of women during the perinatal period and of children.

• PDF

This resource guide is designed to help health professionals, program administrators, educators, and others understand the benefits and drawbacks of fluoride varnish and silver diamine fluoride. The guide provides an annotated list of resources on the use and application of fluoride varnish and silver diamine fluoride, including materials on data and surveillance, professional education and training, and public education. Descriptions of and contact information for relevant organizations are also included. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]

• PDF

This review evaluates the relative effectiveness of dental sealants compared with fluoride varnishes (FVs) or sealants together with FVs compared with FVs alone for preventing dental caries in the occlusal surfaces of permanent teeth of children and adolescents. The review is an update of one first published in 2006 and last updated in 2010. It provides background, objectives, methods, results, and a discussion.

• Link

This brief presents information to help health professionals design, implement, and evaluate community-based programs that apply fluoride varnish. Topics include a definition of fluoride varnish and how it prevents tooth decay; the characteristics, effectiveness, and safety of fluoride varnish; and recommendations for using fluoride varnish. The brief also provides tips for selecting cost-effective community and school dental-caries-prevention programs.

• PDF

This series of handouts for pregnant women and parents of infants and young children provides simple tips on nutrition and oral health issues. Topics include brushing a young child’s teeth, choosing healthy drinks, encouraging children to drink water with fluoride, giving children healthy snacks, taking care of oral health for pregnant women, and taking care of an infant’s oral health. The series is written in simple language and is available in English and in Spanish. One handout, Using Silver Diamine Fluoride on Children's Teeth, is also available in Arabic, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Persian, and Somali.

• English
• Spanish

This review provides information about the effectiveness and safety of fluoride varnishes in preventing dental caries in children and adolescents and examines factors potentially modifying their effect. The review presents a summary of findings, background, objectives, methods, results, and a discussion. Implications for practice are presented. [Funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]

• PDF

This curriculum is designed to provide Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment non-oral-health professionals in Maryland with knowledge and skills to reduce the incidence of dental caries among children ages 3 and under and to help establish a dental home. The four modules provide information on the role of non-oral-health professionals in children’s oral health and describe the dental caries process and how to conduct a dental caries risk assessment. The modules also address anticipatory guidance, fluoride varnish application, and referral to a dentist. [Funded in part by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau]

• Link