The Effectiveness of Virtual Reality in Controlling Pain and Anxiety Levels in Four-to-Six-Year-Old Children During Dental Treatment

Omar S Almajed; Rakan Alhujhuj; Eyad Alshaheen; Abdullatif Almujhim; Mohammed Albutayh; Ravi G Raghunath; Gauri Lele

doi:10.7759/cureus.51099

The Effectiveness of Virtual Reality in Controlling Pain and Anxiety Levels in Four-to-Six-Year-Old Children During Dental Treatment

Cureus. 2023 Dec 26;15(12):e51099. doi: 10.7759/cureus.51099. eCollection 2023 Dec.

Authors

Omar S Almajed^{1

2}, Rakan Alhujhuj³, Eyad Alshaheen⁴, Abdullatif Almujhim⁵, Mohammed Albutayh⁶, Ravi G Raghunath⁷, Gauri Lele⁸

Affiliations

¹ Pediatric Dentistry, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, SAU.
² Dental Public Health, King's College London, London, GBR.
³ Dental Department, King Abdulaziz National Guard Hospital, Al Hofuf, SAU.
⁴ Dentistry, Private Practice, Riyadh, SAU.
⁵ Dentistry, Private Practice, Al Ahsa, SAU.
⁶ Dentistry, Private Practice, Al Khobar, SAU.
⁷ Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, King Faisal University, Al Ahsa, SAU.
⁸ Pediatric and Preventive Dentistry, Navrachana University, Gujarat, IND.

Abstract

Background and objective Oral health is critical for children's overall well-being; however, dental anxiety often leads to the avoidance of necessary dental care among children. Virtual reality (VR) has emerged as a successful adjunctive tool in various clinical settings, including pain management. This cohort study explores the use of VR technology in reducing anxiety and pain perception during dental procedures for children. The primary objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of VR distraction in managing pain and anxiety levels in children aged four to six years during dental procedures. Additionally, the study aimed to compare children's anxiety levels with and without VR eyeglasses. Methodology This single-blind, crossover clinical trial was conducted at the Dental Complex of King Faisal University, Al Ahsa, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Of the 200 children screened initially, 20 aged four to six years who met the inclusion criteria were selected, and ethical approval for the study was obtained. The study comprised two groups: a control group and an experimental group. Dental procedures were conducted both with and without the use of VR, employing a split-mouth design. Results Our findings provide important insights into the clinical impact of using VR technology to alleviate children's anxiety during dental clinic visits. In our study, we used ANOVA and Tukey's post hoc test to evaluate the effect of VR glasses on vital metrics in children during dental procedures. Our results showed no significant differences before and after using the VR glasses, indicating limited effectiveness in reducing anxiety in this context. Conclusion Based on our findings, we reject the assumption that VR devices are highly effective in diverting children's attention and reducing their anxiety and pain during dental procedures; we recommend further investigations to identify potential confounding factors that could modulate the utility of VR in medical settings.

Keywords: dental anxiety; distraction techniques; pain management; pediatric dentistry; virtual reality.