Behavior of Children Submitted to Tooth Extraction: Influence of Maternal and Child Psychosocial Characteristics

Abstract

Objective: To assess the child's behavior during primary tooth extractions, taking into account child's psychosocial and demographic factors and maternal characteristics. Material and Methods: An observational cross-sectional study involving children aged 7-13 years attending at the dental clinics of the School of Dentistry, Federal University of Pelotas. Children who underwent primary tooth extraction under local anesthesia and accompanied by their mothers were included. Data collection consisted of a questionnaire applied to mothers, assessment of child's behavior (Frankl Scale) and record of the presence of the mother. Data were analyzed using Stata 12.0 software. Descriptive analysis of the variables of interest and the Chi-square and Fisher Exact tests were performed to investigate the effect of independent variables on the outcome. The association between independent variables and the outcome was observed by crude and adjusted multivariate analysis by Poisson Regression (prevalence ratio). A 5% significance level was adopted. Results: Of 333 children evaluated, 124 were included in this study. Most were female (54.5%) aged 7-10 years (65.8%). The adjusted multivariate analysis, maternal dental anxiety and presence of the mother were the variables that remained associated with the child's behavior. Conclusion: This study suggests that presence of the mother and maternal dental anxiety negatively affect the behavior of children aged 7-13 years during primary tooth extraction.

Dental anxiety in schoolchildren with molar incisor hypomineralization—A population‐based cross‐sectional study

“…Child's behavior is influenced by personal experiences and also for stories that are told to children . Dental anxiety (DA) can interfere in pediatric dental care and may negatively impact the oral health‐related quality of life of children, leading to behavioral difficulties during dental procedures and even the refusal of the treatment . Persistent fear and DA may have a negative impact on adult's oral health .…”

“…1 Dental anxiety (DA) can interfere in pediatric dental care and may negatively impact the oral health-related quality of life of children, leading to behavioral difficulties during dental procedures and even the refusal of the treatment. [2][3][4] Persistent fear and DA may have a negative impact on adult's oral health. 5 Individuals with high levels of DA are more likely to have toothaches and also a poor perception of their oral health.…”

Child’s Behavior and its Relationship with the Level of Maternal-Child Anxiety During Dental Care

“…The simple presence of mother and maternal dental anxiety negatively affect the behavior of children [13]. Therefore, it is important to clarify and guide parents about the child's oral health and the influence of their feelings on the child's feelings.…”

“…The presence of pain has always been associated with elevated anxiety level or the triggering of fear [2,10,13,28]. Fear may also be associated with the absence of dental treatment and oral health deterioration [10].…”

“…Parents are in direct contact with their children and have a strong influence on their opinion regarding dentistry and, therefore, their behavior during clinical care [8][9][10][11]. The presence of the mother and maternal dental anxiety negatively affect the behavior of children aged 7-13 years during primary tooth extraction [13].…”