Comparative evaluation of sensory-adapted dental environment and conventional dental environment on dental anxiety and behaviour in children: a randomized controlled trial.

Authors

T Gupta, S Joshi, S Choubey, A Jain

Published in

European archives of paediatric dentistry : official journal of the European Academy of Paediatric Dentistry. Sep 17, 2026. Epub Sep 17, 2026.

Abstract

To compare the effectiveness of a sensory-adapted dental environment (SADE) and a conventional dental environment (CDE) in reducing dental anxiety and improving behavioural and physiological responses in anxious children.
The randomized controlled trial included 50 children aged between 4-8 years who required inferior alveolar nerve block administration. Participants were randomly allocated into two equal groups (n = 25) using computer-generated randomization method. Group I received treatment in a CDE, whereas Group II was treated in a SADE. The primary outcome was the reduction in dental anxiety, assessed using the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS), Venham Picture Test (VPT), and Wong-Baker Faces Scale (WBFS). Secondary outcomes included changes in physiological stress markers, namely pulse rate, oxygen saturation (SpO₂), and salivary cortisol levels, recorded before and after the procedure and subjected to statistical analysis.
Children treated in the SADE group showed significantly lower dental anxiety than those in the CDE group. When comparing pre- and post-treatment values, MDAS scores decreased significantly in the SADE group (10.36 to 7.48; p < 0.05) compared with the CDE group (8.00 to 9.24). Salivary cortisol levels decreased in the SADE group (20.28 to 9.41 ng/mL) but increased in the CDE group. Venham Picture Test and Wong-Baker Faces Scale scores increased significantly in the CDE group (p < 0.05) indicating increased anxiety.
A SADE significantly reduced dental anxiety and physiological stress responses compared with a CDE. SADE may serve as an effective non-pharmacological approach for managing anxious paediatric patients.

PMID:
42753119
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 18 Sep 2026.

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