Determination of optimal time lapse for recall of patients in an incremental dental care program.

The study was designed to determine the optimal recall interval for persons, ages 5 to 19 years, in the Indian Health Service dental care program and to determine the optimal number of persons to whom maintenance care could be provided at various recall intervals. Analyses used to determine the optimal number of persons and the optimal recall period are described. As expected, the number of services required increased as the maintenance interval increased. The maximum number of persons can be treated on a recall period of 25 to 27 months, but during this time persons 5 to 9 years old had significant increases in the number of services required. Therefore, the optimal recall interval for persons in this age group is to 10 to 12 months. The optimal recall interval for persons 10 to 14 years old is 25 to 27 months, and for persons 15 to 19 years old, 22 to 24 months.