Animal Assisted Therapy

University of Puerto Rico20 enrolled

Overview

The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate whether treatment assisted by companion dogs, as a behavior management technique during dental treatment in pediatric patients, is effective, in children between 4 and 12 years old. The main question it aims to answer is: • Pediatric patients with poor behavior will improve their behavior in the presence of a therapy dog during dental treatments. Researchers will compare patient behavior with and without the therapy dog to see if behavior during dental treatment improves with dog presence Participants will complete two dental visits: 1. First visit: without the therapy dog 2. Second visit: with the therapy dog present In both visits, the child will receive the same dental treatment required in their treatment plan. A faculty member will evaluate the child's behavior with and without the therapy dog. Parents or guardians will be asked to complete a sociodemographic questionnaire and a perception survey regarding dental treatment with or without the therapy dog.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

Conditions

Dental Fear and Anxiety Animal Assisted Therapy Dental Treatment

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 4 YearsMax age: 12 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Patients with ages between 4-12 years old * Patients who presents history of uncooperativeness during dental treatments and fear/anxiety in the dental setting, according to the parents. * Patients must have at least two quadrants of dental interventions of similar complexity available Exclusion Criteria: * Children will be excluded if immunocompromised. * Children with a had a medical history of allergies and/or phobias to dogs.

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Frankl Scale

Frankl Scale 1. --) Definitely negative. Refusal of treatment, forceful crying, fearfulness, or any other overt evidence of extreme negativism. 2. -) Negative. Reluctance to accept treatment, uncooperative, some evidence of negative attitude but no pronounced (sullen, withdrawn) 3. +) Positive. Acceptance of treatment, cautious behavior at times, willingness to comply with the dentist, at times with reservation, but patient follows the dentist's directions cooperatively. 4. -) Definitely positive. Good rapport with the dentist, interest in the dental procedure, laughter and enjoyment. A Frankl behavior scale (FBR) scale will be recorded during the anesthetic procedure and during the operative/surgical procedure. Two dental visits of 1 hour each will be scheduled to perform dental treatments of similar complexity. One visit without a dog and a second visit with a therapy dog. The Frankl scale will be done by an external evaluator, not the dental operator performing the dental treatment.

Time frame: through study completion, an average of 1 year