Table 1.

Characteristics table of the studies that compared SDF to calcium hydroxide (CAOH) in indirect pulp capping of primary teeth.

Author-date	Site	Study design	Number and Age of children	Number and type of teeth	Method of assessment	SDF Clinical/radiographical	CAOH Clinical/radiographical	Final restoration
Shafi et al., 2022	India	Randomized clinical trial	56 children Mean age 5.7	56 primary molars 28 dilute SDF 28 light cure CaOH	Criteria of success: the presence of an intact tooth with normal periodontium, and intact lamina dura, Criteria for failure included: the presence of pain, sensitivity to percussion, intraoral or extraoral sinus/abscess/swelling, widening of periodontal ligament space, internal resorption of the root, external resorption of the root, radiolucency in furcal area.	The success of SDF was 96% at the end of 12 months. The difference between the two groups was not statistically significant (p>0.05). However, dilute SDF can be a potential treatment option as an indirect pulp capping material in primary molars with deep caries lesions due to the high success rate.	The success of light cure calcium hydroxide was 91.6% at the end of 12 months.	The indirect pulp treatment was followed by glass ionomer cement restoration and all primary molars received stainless steel crowns.
Divyashree - 2021	India	Randomized controlled in vivo study	75 children 6–9 years	75 teeth Primary molars 25 SDF 25 CAOH 25 MTA	Clinical sign and symptoms: No pain, no sensitivity to percussion, no swelling and/or fistula, no pathologic tooth mobility, retention of the restoration (Marginal integrity) Radiographic: formation of reparative dentine, no radiolucency in periapical or furcation are, no widening of periodontal ligament space, no external or internal resorption	The success of 38% SDF was evaluated using PA and Corel draw software The reparative dentin was around 0.0076 mm by the end of 6 months from baseline. This gives a statistically insignificant P- Value of 0.83. SDF showed the lowest amount of reparative dentin formation among all three groups.	The success of CAOH was evaluated using PA and Corel draw software The reparative dentine formed was around 0.1534 mm by the end of 6 months from baseline.	All teeth were restored with Resin Modified Glass Ionomer Cement RMGIC to ensure a proper seal
Patil et al., 2021		Randomized control trial	Number of children not mentioned Age 4–7 years	50 teeth Primary molar 25 SDF 25 CAOH	Clinical success criteria: absence of spontaneous night-time pain, sensitivity to pressure or any stimulus, mobility, abscess, sinus, fistula and swelling of periodontal tissue in each follow-up examinations. Radiographic success criteria: increase in the remaining dentin thickness, absence of interradicular radiolucency, periodontal ligament space thickening and signs of pathological root resorption in each follow-up radiograph.	Clinical and radiographic success 3-month follow-up:24 (96%) Clinical and radiographic Success 6-month follow-up: 24 (96%) No significant difference between the outcomes of the two materials	Clinical and radiographic success 3-month follow-up:23 (92%) Clinical and radiographic success 6-month follow-up: 22 (88%)	Permanent restoration for SDF group was then done using resin modified glass ionomer cement. Permanent restoration for CAOH group was using resin modified glass ionomer cement.
Shah et al., 2020	India	Non-randomized clinical trial	27 children 4–10 years	34 teeth Primary anterior and posterior teeth 18 SDF 16 CAOH	Clinical success criteria: presence or absence of post-treatment signs or symptoms such as sensitivity, pain or swelling Radiographic success criteria: evaluated for the presence or absence of any pathologic changes.	Clinical and radiographic success at 1 month was found to be 100%. There is no significant difference between the two groups.	Clinical and radiographic success at 1 month was found to be 93.75%	All teeth were restored with GIC Fuji IX