Audiovisual distraction methods for anxiety in children during dental treatment: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Dental treatment can cause symptoms such as fear and anxiety. Audiovisual distraction (AD) is a simple and low-cost technique that does not interfere with the dental treatment. Aim: The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of AD methods for children who experience anxiety during dental treatment. Materials and Methods: Two reviewers performed a database search of the studies published between January 1950 and November 2015. The inclusion criteria were papers published in the English language, child samples aged 4–10 years, and use of AD. All potentially relevant studies were identified by the title and the abstract. After the full-text analysis of the potentially relevant studies, the selected studies were included in the systematic review. A meta-analysis calculation was performed for the overall data and the subgroup data. Results: Thirty-seven nonduplicated studies were found. However, after reviewing the articles, only five were included. A high variability was observed among the papers. Tools and questionnaires used to measure the anxiety during dental treatment presented the most common variability. Meta-analysis demonstrated a lower anxiety level in AD method groups when Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale was used (P = 0.02) with a mean difference (confidence interval) of −8.72 (−16.7, −1.38). Conclusion: The AD method is effective for controlling dental anxiety in children.