A comparative evaluation of video modeling and social stories for improving oral hygiene in children with autism spectrum disorder: A pilot study.

Introduction: The purpose of this pilot study was to compare video modeling (VM) to a toothbrushing social story (TSS) for improving oral hygiene in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Methods: Four to 17-year-old children and adolescents with ASD were evaluated at a pre-intervention visit for quality of oral hygiene using plaque and gingival indices. A pre-intervention survey assessed caregivers' perceptions of their children's daily oral hygiene practices. Participants were randomized into VM or TSS groups and caregivers received daily emails to access a VM or TSS presentation when completing toothbrushing for their child for 30 days. At the one-month visit, oral hygiene was re-evaluated, and post-intervention surveys were completed.

Results: There were significant improvements in plaque and gingival scores for VM (0.68 ± 0.20; 0.59 ± 0.15) and TSS (0.50 ± 0.11; 0.40 ± 0.10) groups at post-intervention compared to pre-intervention visits. No significant improvements in plaque or gingival scores were noted between the VM and TSS groups. Caregivers' perceptions regarding oral hygiene acceptance by their children was promising for the VM group.

Conclusions: VM and TSS interventions improved oral hygiene in subjects with ASD. There was greater acceptance of daily oral hygiene in the VM compared to the TSS group.