The Effect of Three-point Acupressure Therapy on Anxiety Levels in Children Undergoing Dental Procedures

To evaluate the efficacy of three-point acupressure therapy in decreasing the dental anxiety in children undergoing dental procedures and to introduce acupressure as a simple, noninvasive, and cost-effective technique of reducing dental anxiety in children.

One hundred and sixty-eight, 8-12 years participants who met the inclusion criteria were randomly allotted to either group I (three-point acupressure) (n = 84) or group II (control) (n = 84). All children were subjected to a self-report measure of anxiety [Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (MCDAS)] 30 minutes before starting and after completing the dental treatment. For group I children, acupressure beads were applied on selected three acupoints for approximately 10 minutes and were left adhered in place. After 20 minutes, anxiety scores were recorded for all the children and allotted treatment procedure was initiated. For group II children, the same methodology was followed except for the application of acupressure beads. Frankl behavior (FB) rating scale, pulse rate (PR), and systemic saturation levels of oxygen were also recorded as secondary outcome measures. The data obtained was analyzed statistically using Chi-squared analysis, t-test, repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) along with post hoc Bonferroni test. Significance level was predetermined at p ≤ 0.05.

At time frame (TF)-2, significant decrease in anxiety scores was observed in acupressure group irrespective of the treatment procedure, whereas in control group, it increased significantly. PR was also increased in acupressure group and FB scale was improved. In control group, PR increased and behavior was not improved. Between TF-2 and 3, no reduction in anxiety score was observed.

The three-point acupressure therapy reduces anxiety in children undergoing dental procedures when compared to nonacupressure group and the difference was statistically significant. Acupressure is a noninvasive stimulation technique applied to acupoints and can be easily administered by a trained pediatric dentist.

Sisodia M, Kaur H, Garg N, et al. The Effect of Three-point Acupressure Therapy on Anxiety Levels in Children Undergoing Dental Procedures. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2024;17(2):136-142.