Publication:

Pediatric headgear: a game changer

Background The American academy of pediatric dentistry has recently suggested conducting additional research on nonpharmacologic therapies, despite the fact that dental clinics employ a variety of strategies to manage anxious children, including communicative, pharmacologic, and nonpharmacologic interventions. Aim of the effectiveness of two nonpharmacologic behavior management techniques, pediatric headgear (PH) and tell-show-do (TSD) technique, on dental anxiety in children.

Methods Thirty children aged between 2-5 years who were on their first dental visit were split into 2 groups. group I PH and group II with TDS. The anxiety levels were recorded at different intervals with the help of 4 criteria-Visual analogue scale (VAS), Facial image scale (FIS), heart rate and oxygen saturation while performing class 1 gic restoration. Student’s t-test was done to compare these criteria between two groups at various time intervals.

Results Statistically significant reduction in the anxiety level was seen in children who received PH (p=0.001) and TSD technique (p<0.001).

Conclusions The PH was found to be more capable in reducing anxiety than TSD.