Dataset for the Network Meta-Analysis on the Effect of Probiotic Supplementation on Streptococcus mutans Counts

This dataset supports the systematic review and network meta-analysis entitled “Effect of Probiotic Supplementation on Cariogenic Streptococcus mutans Levels: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis.”
It contains all extracted quantitative data used for pairwise and network comparisons assessing the impact of probiotic supplementation on S. mutans counts in saliva and dental biofilm.

Data were obtained from randomized controlled clinical trials conducted in humans, excluding in vitro studies, following PRISMA 2020 and CINeMA methodological standards.
Variables include study identifiers, probiotic strains, comparator types, follow-up periods (in days), sample sizes, means, standard deviations, and calculated mean differences for bacterial counts.

The dataset was cleaned and harmonized in Microsoft Excel and analyzed using R (packages meta and netmeta). It is structured to allow reproducibility of network meta-analyses and triangulation of findings with MetaInsight outputs.