Effects of audiovisual distraction on children's behaviour during dental treatment: a randomized controlled clinical trial.

Aim: Dental anxiety leads to undesirable distresses such as avoidance of dental treatment and increase stress among caregivers that consequently affect the treatment quality. The aim of this study was therefore to evaluate the effectiveness of viewing videotaped cartoons using an eyeglass system (i-theatre™) as an audiovisual (AV) distraction technique on behaviour and anxiety in children receiving dental restorative treatment.

Methods: Fifty-six consecutive children patients who presented for treatment and met inclusion criteria were included and randomly divided into two groups; a control group without distraction (CTR-group) and a distraction-group (AV-group).