Effect of Virtual Reality Distraction on Pain and Anxiety Level among Children Aged 5-8 Years during Dental Treatment

Objective: To assess the effect of Virtual Reality Distraction Technique (VRDT) on pain and anxiety among 5 to 8 years children during dental treatment and to compare the impact of Virtual Reality Distraction Technique (VRDT) vs No VRDT on pain and stress in 5 -8-year-old children during short invasive dental treatment.Methods: This study was carried out in the University College of Dentistry, University of Lahore. Children were selected randomly from the OPD of the Pediatric Dentistry Department. This observational study was conducted on 64 children equally divided into two groups (32 exposed to VRDT and 32 not exposed to VRDT). Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED) and Wong-Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale were used to measure anxiety and pain respectively. SPSS was used for data analysis. Mean, standard deviations, and percentages were calculated for descriptive data whereas chi-square test or independent-sample t-tests were used for mean differences in the two groups. Pvalue<0.05 was considered significant.Results: Among all, 59.38% females and 40.63% males (5-8 years) were included. The children in the VRDT group were relatively more relaxed and reported lesser pain when injected in gums (p-values< 0.05 respectively). There was no mean difference in anxiety among children in the two groups (p-value>0.05).Conclusion: Anxiety during dental procedures is common among children. The visual Reality Distraction Technique (VRDT) is effective in distracting patients before and during treatment. In the present study, it helped to reduce pain frequency and made them feel relaxed. Hence, VRDT can be opted as a preferred distraction method for children to deal with their dental phobia and anxiety.