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Application of magic distraction therapy for the alleviation of dental fear and anxiety in children younger than 12 years: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

  • Kuan-Ting Lee1
  • Ming-Jui Chung2
  • Yu-Fen Yen3
  • Yi-Ching Yang1,4,5,*,
  • Wei-Li Wang1,*,

1Department of Family Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, 70403 Tainan, Taiwan

2Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of Surgery, National Taiwan University Hospital, 100225 Taipei, Taiwan

3Division of Special Needs Dentistry, Department of Stomatology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, School of Dentistry & Institute of Oral Medicine, Medical College, National Cheng Kung University, 70403 Tainan, Taiwan

4Department of Family Medicine, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, 701401 Tainan, Taiwan

5Department of Geriatric and Gerontology, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, 701401 Tainan, Taiwan

DOI: 10.22514/jocpd.2024.145

Submitted: 29 June 2024 Accepted: 20 August 2024

Online publish date: 06 November 2024

*Corresponding Author(s): Yi-Ching Yang E-mail: yiching@mail.ncku.edu.tw
*Corresponding Author(s): Wei-Li Wang E-mail: wwwfifyw@gmail.com

Abstract

Dental fear and anxiety (DFA) in children leads to increased pain sensitivity and challenging behaviors that complicate treatment. Employing magic as a distraction therapy utilizes children’s imagination and curiosity to mitigate these effects, yet its systematic evaluation is lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of magic distraction therapy (MDT) in reducing DFA in children and identify the determinants of its efficacy. This study adhered to the 2020 Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines and was registered in the International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (INPLASY202420074). We searched Embase, MEDLINE, Scopus, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Clinical Trials, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) involving children under 12 years receiving dental treatment with MDT. Studies that combined multiple distraction methods or used hypnosis were excluded. The meta-analysis analyzed the data using a random effects model, with subgroup analysis and meta-regression. The methodological quality of the studies was assessed using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials (RoB 2). The analysis included four RCTs involving a total of 180 children aged 2 to 11 years. Overall, 25.0% of the included studies had a low risk of bias, 75.0% had some risk of bias, and none had a high risk of bias. Magic significantly reduced dental anxiety (Hedges’ g = −1.236, 95% confidence interval (CI): −1.798 to −0.673, p < 0.001), particularly during treatments involving local anesthesia (p = 0.006), performed concurrently during treatment (p = 0.008), and in younger children (coefficient = −0.2077 per year, p < 0.001). This study supports MDT as an effective approach for reducing DFA in children, highlighting the importance of timing, anesthesia and patient age in optimizing anxiety reduction strategies.


Keywords

Attention; Behavior therapy; Dental anxiety; Magic; Pediatric dentistry


Cite and Share

Kuan-Ting Lee,Ming-Jui Chung,Yu-Fen Yen,Yi-Ching Yang,Wei-Li Wang. Application of magic distraction therapy for the alleviation of dental fear and anxiety in children younger than 12 years: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Journal of Clinical Pediatric Dentistry. 2024.doi:10.22514/jocpd.2024.145.

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