How different level of virtual reality influence Anxiety, Behavior and Oral Health Status in preschool Children

Abstract

Introduction: Compared with traditional behavior management strategy and oral health training, virtual reality (VR) integrated with multisensory feedback possess potentials advantages in dentistry. VR has shown great potentials in various dental fields such as pain perception, anxiety control and training.

Objective: This study aimed to assess the impact of different level of VR including Non- immersive VR, Semi immersive VR and Immersive VR on anxiety, behavior and oral health status of four to six years old children during routine dental procedure.

Methods: This study included 60 healthy children aged 4-6 years. Children with no previous anxiety disorder were randomly divided into four groups, each consisting of 15 children. The study consisted of 2 consecutive treatment sessions. During the first visit oral health education was carried out in all groups and plaque index calculated. Oral health education instructions are given using Immersive VR (group I), Semi immersive VR (group II), Non-immersive VR (group III) and Tell-Show-Do (group IV). In the second session, a class I or II amalgam restoration of primary mandibular molars using inferior alveolar nerve block was performed in all studied groups along with Immersive VR, Semi immersive VR, Non-immersive VR and Tell-Show-Do. During the treatment session subject’ anxiety level measured using Faces version of the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale [MCDAS (f)]. Meanwhile, Patient’s behavior recorded based on the Frankel Classification Scale. Oral health status recorded in two follow-up sessions (one month apart) using the plaque index.

Results: There were no statistically significant differences in age and gender between the groups. The most prevalence of positive behavior (P=0.004) and the lowest anxiety (p<0.001) was recorded in group I, followed by group II, group III and group IV. The plaque index scores showed a reduced trend (P<0.001), but the values did not differ significantly between the four groups (P=0.205). Conclusions: This study offers evidence on the beneficial impact of different level of VR meditation on anxiety and behavior.