Bring your canine to clean your canines!
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Dental anxiety in children can lead to poor oral health early in life. How can we calm our kids?
Enter Sergio Luiz Pinheiro and team at Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas in Brazil. They explored the impact of therapy dogs during dental procedures.
They monitored twenty children’s heart rates and assessed anxiety levels using questionnaires. Procedures included oral surgery, restorative dentistry, and impressions.
Results? Children with a dog present experienced lower heart rates and anxiety. That reduces the need for sedatives and the risk of negative side effects afterward!
So next time you head to the dentist, give your dog a hug. But don’t kiss them. That costs extra.
Reference: Pinheiro SL, Silva C, Luiz L, Silva N, Fonseca R, Velásquez T, Grandizoli DR. Dog-assisted therapy for control of anxiety in pediatric dentistry. J Clin Pediatr Dent. 2023 Nov;47(6):38-43. doi: 10.22514/jocpd.2023.080. Epub 2023 Nov 3. PMID: 37997233.