Children's behavior in emergency and non-emergency dental situations

This study evaluated children's behavior during emergency and non-emergency visits to the dentist. Three methods were used to evaluate behavior: 1) the Palmar Sweat Index, 2) the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale, and 3) the Frankl Behavior Scale. Forty children, 6-12 years of age, were seen in a pediatric dental clinic. All children had no previous dental experiences. Twenty patients were seen for new patient examinations and twenty patients had emergency examinations and treatment. This study showed that children exhibit equal levels of stress whether for a screening appointment or an emergency visit. The Palmar Sweat Index has the potential of being a viable evaluation for detecting non-verbally expressed anxiety.