Effects of using audiovisual distraction in children during dental treatment: A randomized clinical study
Shady Ahmed Moussa
Background: Using video eyeglasses as an audiovisual distraction is useful in managing anxiety and reducing fear and anxiety in healthy children during dental treatments. Dental anxiety has a significant impact on cooperative behavior during the dental visit, particularly in children, and it could impede, or even preclude, the dental treatment. For these reasons, a knowledge of the appropriate guidelines of behavioral management of children plays a key role in the oral health promotion and represents a major topic in pediatric dentistry. Distraction is the technique of diverting the patient's attention from an unpleasant procedure.
Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of audiovisual distraction on behavior and self-reported pain of children during dental restorations and its influence on the operator stress and the time of the appointment.
Material & Methods: This randomized controlled crossover trial study of 96 outpatient’s healthy children under 12 years requiring at least two dental fillings. The written informed consent for participation and publication was obtained from parents/legal guardians of each patient in full accordance with the ethical principles of the Helsinki Declaration. First dental filling was done wearing the videoeyeglasses and other one using conventional behavior management techniques. Subjective and objective pain was evaluated using the Faces Pain Scale - Revised (FPS-R) and the revised Face, Leg, Activity, Cry, and Consol ability scale (r-FLACC). The operator stress using a VAS, the time of the appointment, and the child satisfaction was recorded and tested by paired t-test.
Results: Using video eyeglasses, significantly reduced
the operator stress. The bivariate analysis showed that the mean FPS-R score and the mean r-FLACC score were significantly lower using the video eyeglasses, only during the second clinical session.
Conclusion: Audiovisual distraction could be useful in managing anxiety in children but cannot replace the conventional behavior management techniques.
