Evaluation of galvanic skin conductance as a measurment of child anxiety vs. current self report and observational methods in pediatric dentistry

Abstract

Assessment of procedural distress is essential at assisting children during invasive medical events. This study aimed to determine the validity of galvanic skin conductance as a measure for anxiety assessment in children. Methods: 151 children, aged 57 years, participated in this study. Similar dental treatments were rendered to all subjects. All subjects received a mandibular primary molar restoration after local anesthesia in the treatment session. At the beginning and end of the session, Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (MCDAS), Clinical Anxiety Rating Scale (CARS) and galvanic skin conductance (GSC) were used to determine childs anxiety. Results: GSC was significantly correlated with both MCDAS (rs=0.62, p=0.02) and CARS (rs=0.44, p=0.032). Anxiety decreased during the session in both GSC (rs=0.52, p=0.001) and MCDAS scales (rs=0.77, p=0.001). CARS also showed a reduction between the initial and second assessment, but it was not statistically significant (rs=0.12, P=0.36). Conclusions: The findings suggest that the GSC is a reliable and valid measure of assessing child dental anxiety in a clinical context. The results of the present study elucidate that the anxiety decreased significantly during treatment session. Clinical Implications: GSC may help to identify clinically anxious children before dental treatment and provided with appropriate intervention.