Background: Review of post-operative morbidity reports for pediatric dental care under general anesthesia (GA) show great variations. Until now, no morbidity data has been available to estimate the safety of pediatric patients under GA for dental rehabilitation in Saudi Arabia. The purposes of this study were to (1) investigate post-operative complications associated with dental care under GA and (2) correlate morbidity reports with patient's characteristics, dental procedures, and hospital protocol.

Objective: High caries reports in young Saudi children strongly suggest the need occasionally for general anesthesia to provide quality dental work. The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of patients, dental procedures and hospital protocols for Pediatric Dental General Anesthesia (PDGA) procedure at multi-dental centers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Study Design: Study sample included 90 children attending PDGA treatment at three governmental hospitals in Jeddah. Collected data included patient's demographics, medical condition, admission type, intra-operative protocols, and dental procedures.Results: Results showed the mean age of treated children was 5±2 years and the majority of them (93%)were treated for the first time under general anesthesia (GA). Long waiting duration for PDGA procedure was reported regardless of the patient age and medical status. Being very young with extensive caries was the major indication for GA (58%). Children mean preoperative fasting times were 10 ± 2 hours. Hospitals were significantly different in some protocols for PDGA procedures. Child behavior during GA induction was significantly related to child's age, premedication use, and hospital admission type. The mean number of treated teeth per child was 14±3.8 and the treatment mostly included restorations. Age was found to significantly affect the type of dental treatment, while gender and medical status did not. Conclusions: PDGA procedure is used mostly for young children with extensive dental caries. Children treated under GA received a comprehensive dental care in Saudi hospitals. Efforts should be directed to improve some of the existing hospitals protocols with PDGA procedure. The long waiting period for PDGA operation indicated the need to improve available facilities in the three hospitals.

Objectives Behaviour management strategies involving pharmacological or non-pharmacological interventions during dental procedures should be considered to attain safe and successful treatment outcomes. This study compared the frequencies of use and the completeness of treatment with these interventions. Methods A total of 1725 dental records of patients up to 18 years old, who were treated in the King Abdulaziz Medical City in Jeddah City from October 2018 to June 2019, were used in this retrospective, cross-sectional study. Inferential analysis, Chi-square test, Kruskal–Wallis test, and regression model were used in the data analysis. Results About two-thirds of the patients were treated with attendant non-pharmacological interventions, while one-third, with pharmacological interventions. The application of General Anesthesia (GA) was the most frequently used intervention. Restorative procedures and extractions were done in higher frequencies with pharmacological interventions. Treatments with space maintainers and orthodontic appliances were carried out in higher frequencies with non-pharmacological strategies. The choice of intervention was significantly influenced by the systemic conditions of the patients. Patients treated with non-pharmacological intervention comprised the dominant type of patients, because they required treatments with less pain. Those treated with GA needed restorative treatments and extractions, or treatments that involve pain, but these treatments had higher frequencies of being completed. Conclusions The treatments with pharmacological intervention through GA have higher frequencies of being completed, compared to those with non-pharmacological interventions. Factors, such as age, potential to complete the treatment, and the type of dental treatment applied, influence the choice of treatment intervention.

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