Parental Anxiety during Child's Dental Sedation: Picture Book Effects

Objective:

To determine whether showing a parent a picture book, showing the sedation procedures, before the child's sedation, will alleviate anxiety in the parent.

Methods:

Parents attending the UIC pediatric dental clinic for sedation appointment of their healthy child were requested to participate. Parents were randomly assigned to the study group (Picture book) or control group after obtaining the informed consent for both the study and the sedation. Pre- and post-test questionnaires included the State and Trait Anxiety scale.

Results:

39 parents participated in the study. For 75% of the patients this was their first sedation appointment. There were no statistical differences in initial anxiety noted between patients for whom this was the first sedation as opposed to those who have had a previous sedation. Most of the parents were Latino (70%). All parents that presented with their child for the sedation appointment had moderate levels of anxiety initially. In the experimental group there was a 22% reduction in anxiety score pre- to post-test (repeated measures MANOVA, p<.012).

Conclusion:

This study demonstrated that the use of a picture book prior to a child's sedation appointment reduces parental anxiety.