Dog-Assisted Therapy in Dentistry

NCT03324347 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 2017/1078 (REK)
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 16
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Dog-assisted therapy (DAT) is used in several contexts within various areas of health care. One documented effect is that the proximity of a dog may lower anxiety in perceived stressful situations. Many individuals are afraid to visit the dentist, and someone to the extent that they need medication or anesthesia in order to complete their dental treatment. Based on the literature and own empirical observations, the investigators believe that dog-assisted therapy in connection with dental care may have a positive effect on children with dental anxiety or children that avoid dental care. It is desirable to restrict the use of drugs for these patients because of associated risk and side effects. The purpose of this pilot study is to evaluate whether using a specially trained therapy dog can have a positive effect on children who are afraid in a dental care setting. Eligible participants (n=16) will meet twice at the dental clinic; one treatment session with a therapy dog in the dental clinic and one without. The therapy dog will be accompanied by a certified dog handler. The investigators will measure physiological variations before, during and after the treatment session. The guardian will complete validated questionnaires portraying the participant's experience of previous dental care. The participant and their guardian will also complete validated questionnaires describing their reactions from the two treatment sessions. A descriptive log for each session will be completed by the investigators.

Conditions

Dental Anxiety; Pediatric Dentistry; Animal Assisted Therapy

Keywords

Animal-Assisted Intervention; Dog-Assisted Intervention; Dental Care; Questionnaire; Pilot Project; Dental Clinic

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Examination achieved; Yes or No

  Whether the child complied or not, so that a clinical oral examination could be accomplished within 30 minutes

  up to 8 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Child satisfaction

  up to 8 weeks

• Measurement of anxiety through the CFSS-DS scale (Dental subscale of Children's Fear Survey Schedule)

  up to 8 weeks

• Salivary cortisol level

  up to 8 weeks

• Heart rate variability

  up to 8 weeks

• Skin conductance (Electrodermal activity)

  up to 8 weeks

Study Arms (2)

Therapydog

EXPERIMENTAL

A certified therapydog (together with a certified dog-handler) will be present in the dental clinic while the child will undergo a clinical dental examination by licenced pediatric dentist.

Procedure: Therapydog

No therapydog

NO INTERVENTION

No therapydog will be present in the dental clinic while the child will undergo a clinical dental examination by licenced pediatric dentist.

Interventions

Therapydog PROCEDURE

Presence of a therapydog during a clinical examination in a dental clinic

Therapydog

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 6 Years - 12 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17)

You may qualify if:

• Children who are afraid of visiting the dental office / children who avoid dental treatment,
• Children who accept the presence of a dog,
• Parents or guardians who accept the presence of a dog

You may not qualify if:

• Children or parent/guardian that are afraid of dogs,
• Children or parent/guardian with known dog allergy,
• Children who are immunocompromised,
• Children who cannot understand or complete the patient-questionnaire

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Tromso: lead

Study Sites (1)

Department of Clinical Dentistry, UiT The Arctic University of Norway

Tromsø, N-9037, Norway

Location

Study Officials

• Anne M Gussgard, DDS,MSc,PhD

  Department of Clinical Dentistry, UiT The Arctic University of Norway

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 11, 2017
• First Posted: October 27, 2017
• Study Start: October 31, 2017
• Primary Completion: June 5, 2019
• Study Completion: June 5, 2019
• Last Updated: July 31, 2019

Record last verified: 2018-10

Locations

NO (1)