Evaluation of the effect of audiovisual distraction method with video glasses and external cold-vibration application on pain and anxiety during ınferior alveolar nerve block anesthesia in children

Objective: The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of Virtual Reality (VR) glasses and external cold-vibration (Buzzy® device) distraction techniques on dental anxiety and pain, and compare them with tell-show-do technique as a control group during the inferior alveolar nerve block (IANB) anesthesia in pediatric patient. Method: A total of 120 pediatric patient (age between 6-12) requiring IANB were included in the study. Patients were randomly divided three groups, then dental anxiety and fear were evaluated using oxygen saturation (SpO2), pulse rate, Face Legs Activity Cry Consolability Scale (FLACC), Wong-Baker Faces Scale (WBS) and Visual Analog Scale (VAS) during the procedure of IANB anesthesia. Results: The mean SpO2 scores of the Buzzy group were significantly higher than the VR and control groups during the IANB procedure (p<0,05). In all groups, the mean pulse rates during the IANB procedure were significantly higher compared with the pre-anesthesia pulse rates (p<0,05). The lowest FLACC scores were obtained in the Buzzy group and the highest in the Control group during the IANB procedure (p<0,05). No statistically significant differences were observed between the mean WBS and VAS scores of the VR, Buzzy and Control groups. Conclusion: Within the limitations of this study; it was concluded that distraction technique with Buzzy® device (external cold-vibration) during the IANB anesthesia in pediatric patients (age between 6-12) was more effective in reducing dental anxiety and pain than the audio-visual distraction with VR glasses and tell-show-do behavior management techniques. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of different current behavior management techniques, which can be an alternative to conventional techniques, on dental anxiety and pain during the IANB procedure.