The effectiveness of electronic dental anesthesia in children.

Abstract

This study compared the effectiveness of traditional local anesthesia with a Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation unit that controls pain via electronic dental anesthesia for restorative dental procedures in 6- to 12-year-old children. The sample included 27 children who had two antimere teeth that required restorations of similar size (preventive resin restorations). In each case, the cavity preparation extended into dentin. One of the teeth was treated with conventional local anesthesia and the other with EDA. Selecting which tooth and which method to complete first was done randomly. Both restorations were done at the same appointment. Throughout the procedure, the child was asked to assess the level of discomfort using the Eland Color Scale, which allowed the children to draw on their past painful experiences to judge the level of pain they perceived. The patients demonstrated no overall significant difference in pain perception between the two modalities of treatment, regarding dentin sensitivity and rubber dam clamp replacement. When asked which method they preferred after the study, 78% of the patients chose EDA over local anesthesia.