Does watching cartoons reduce anxiety in children undergoing cerumen aspiration? A randomized controlled study

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Otolaryngology
• Clinical Anesthesiology
• Child Psychology

Background:

• Cerumen aspiration is a common otolaryngologic procedure in children.
• Procedural anxiety and pain are significant concerns during pediatric interventions.
• Distraction techniques are often employed to manage pediatric procedural distress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of watching age-appropriate cartoons in reducing anxiety and pain during cerumen aspiration in pediatric patients.
• To investigate the impact of cartoon viewing as a distraction method on pediatric procedural experience.

Main Methods:

• A prospective randomized controlled study involving 77 children (4-10 years) undergoing cerumen aspiration.
• Patients were randomized into a control group (verbal explanation) and an intervention group (verbal explanation plus cartoon viewing on a tablet).
• Anxiety assessed via Animated Emoji Faces Scale; pain via Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability (FLACC) scale. Statistical analysis using independent-sample t-tests.

Main Results:

• No statistically significant difference in mean FLACC pain scores (2.55 cartoon vs. 3.43 control, p=0.189) or Animated Emoji Faces anxiety scores (2.52 cartoon vs. 2.70 control, p=0.514) between groups.
• A non-significant trend towards lower pain and anxiety scores was observed in the cartoon group.
• The study included 33 children in the cartoon group and 44 in the control group.

Conclusions:

• Watching cartoons during cerumen aspiration did not significantly reduce anxiety or pain in pediatric patients.
• While a slight trend towards lower scores was noted in the cartoon group, the effect was not statistically significant.
• Larger studies are recommended to further investigate the role of distraction techniques in pediatric otolaryngology procedures.