Measuring dental anxiety in children with complex and additional support needs using the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (faces) (MCDASf)

A Dental Playbox has been developed to reduce dental anxiety among children with complex and additional support needs. The aim of this paper was to examine the level of agreement between parents and children in relation to dental anxiety using the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (faces) (MCDASf) and a parental proxy (CFSS-DS), and to assess whether agreement levels were influenced by exposure to the Dental Playbox materials. Methodology: Children were selected as part of a post-intervention evaluation study. Teachers identified children similar in age and ability level, who had and had not taken part in the intervention. Questionnaires were sent to parents (n=220), and with their consent, questionnaires were also administered to their children as a classroom exercise (n=47). In total, 47 parent-child dyads were available for analysis. The questionnaires included measures of child dental anxiety, experience of invasive and non-invasive dental procedures, anxiety level at the child’s last dental visit, and child’s age. Results: Mean scores on parent and child measures of child dental anxiety were not significantly different. This also applied to those exposed to the intervention and those who were not, with the exception of items relating to non-invasive procedures. Correlations between child and parent scores were approximately r=0.3, with agreement stronger among families of intervention children. Conclusions: Reliable measurement of dental anxiety can be obtained from children with complex and additional support needs, using appropriate scales, particularly when families have been involved in programmes to reduce anxiety. The potential to use these scales in clinical settings must now be investigated.