Sensory adapted dental rooms reduce autism stress

Dentistry

Gaby Bissett

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Sensory adapted dental clinic environments create less distressing oral care experiences for children with autism.

This is according to new research carried out at the University of Southern California.

In the study, children with autism received cleanings in both a standard clinic environment and an adapted one.

In the adapted setting, the dentist wore a surgical loupe with attached lamp. Blackout curtains were hung over the windows and a slow-motion visual effect was projected onto the ceiling. Children could choose between a ‘Finding Nemo’ underwater scene or lava lamp-style abstract colours.

A portable speaker played calming nature sounds and quiet piano music. In addition, a traditional lead X-ray bib placed on the child’s chest and a ‘butterfly’ wrap secured around the dental chair provided deep pressure hugging sensation from shoulder to ankle. This has been shown to calm the nervous system.

Electrodes were also placed on the child’s fingers measured electrodermal activity – a physiological correlate of sympathetic nervous system activation similar to the fight-or-flight response.

In addition, they observed the frequency and duration of distressed behaviours displayed by the child.

Data showed that children’s physiological stress dropped as soon as they entered the adapted dental cleaning room before the actual cleaning even began – and that level of physiological stress predicted the behavioural distress during the cleaning.

Lead author Leah Stein Duker is assistant professor at the USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy.

‘We’ve shown that the combination of curated visual, auditory and tactile adaptations — all of which are easily implemented, relatively inexpensive and don’t require training to safely use — led to statistically significant decreases in autistic children’s behavioural and physiological distress during dental cleanings,’ she said.

‘So many interventions try to change the person. Instead, this intervention sees children for who they are — it does not try to fix or change them — focusing the intervention to modify problematic environmental factors as a way to empower the child and family to engage successfully in occupation.’

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