ReviewChildren (Basel, Switzerland)2025
Effectiveness of Non-Pharmacological Interventions in Reducing Dental Anxiety Among Children with Special Needs: A Scoping Review with Conceptual Map.
Review in Children (Basel, Switzerland), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
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Abstract
backgroundChildren with special needs often need tailored approaches to oral healthcare to address their unique needs effectively. It is essential to analyze the effectiveness of non-pharmacological management in reducing dental anxiety among special needs children during dental treatment.
methodsFive electronic databases, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Embase, and Google Scholar, were searched from 2007 to August 2024 for randomized control trials and observational studies comparing the effectiveness of non-pharmacological techniques in reducing dental anxiety during invasive and noninvasive dental treatment. The primary outcomes of the studied intervention were reduced dental anxiety and improved behavior during dental treatment. The conceptual map was created to understand the need for assessment and behavior management for special needs children (SN).
resultsNineteen articles qualified for the final analysis from 250 screened articles. Included studies evaluated the effect of strategies applied clinically, such as audio-visual distraction, sensory-adapted environment, and virtual reality. The included studies measured the trivial to large effect of measured interventions and supported non-pharmacological interventions in clinical settings.
conclusionsMost basic non-pharmacological interventions showed a trivial to large reduction in dental anxiety among SN patients. The conceptual map developed in this study supports the need for non-pharmacological interventions as they are cost-effective and create a positive environment in dental clinics. However, more studies need to focus on non-pharmacological behavior interventions in SN children to support the findings of this scoping review.
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