Effectiveness of Pre-administered Natural Sweet-tasting Solution for Decreasing Pain Associated with Dental Injections in Children: A Split-mouth Randomized Controlled Trial

This study aimed to discern if a prior intake of a natural sweet remedy (honey) impacted pain perception during intraoral injections.

One hundred healthy children who needed the same treatment bilaterally in either arch which required local anesthetic administration (infiltration in maxillary arch and inferior alveolar nerve block in mandibular arch) were recruited. The patients' demographic details were recorded. Local anesthesia was administered after taking 5 mL of honey solution on the test side and 5 mL of sterile water on the control side. Subjective pain perception during injection was measured using Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale and objective pain by sound, eye, body movement (SEM) rating scale. The parametric data were analyzed using a paired Student's t-test (p <0.05). Level of consensus between the two scales was assessed using Pearson's correlation.

The test side yielded lower mean Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale (3.72 ± 1.80) and SEM (4.12 ± 1.04) scores than the control side (6.00 ± 2.06 and 5.00 ± 1.45 respectively). This was statistically significant.

The administering of a natural sweet solution such as honey before dental injections in children tends to reduce the discomfort and pain associated with the procedure.

Pain management is of utmost importance in dentistry, especially among children. The consumption of natural foods such as honey helps in decreasing injection pain perception, making the child cooperative, and thereby allowing the dentist to provide the best dental care.