Journal of South Asian Association of Pediatric Dentistry (Jul 2025)

A Comparative Evaluation of Bubble Breath Play Therapy and Hand-held Video Gaming Used in Reducing Dental Anxiety among Children

  • Shital Kiran Davangere Padmanabh,
  • Omkar R Bhise

DOI
https://doi.org/10.5005/jp-journals-10077-3355
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 2
pp. 115 – 119

Abstract

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Background: Bubble breath play therapy has proven to be a helpful diversionary tactic for children's pain management during dental procedures. Video gaming has been widely used in health care for behavior modification and distraction. Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of bubble breath therapy and hand-held video gaming in reducing the anxiety in children aged 6–12 years. Materials and methods: Randomized control trial was conducted on 75 healthy children aged 6–12 years. Parents provided written consent for the study. Subjects were allocated based on their reporting day of the week into groups I, II, and III. About 25 children were assigned to the tell-show-do (TSD) technique, distraction with hand-held video gaming, and distraction with bubble breath play therapy. Before and after the treatment, we measured the pulse rate which is an objective anxiety sign and subjective anxiety levels with the help of a facial image scale. A paired t-test was implemented to determine variations among the responses. Results: Bubble breath play therapy was more effective than hand-held video gaming in reducing dental anxiety in 6–12-year-old children. Pairwise multiple intergroup comparison of pulse rate and Fitness and Intensity Scale (FIS) between the three groups after treatment was performed using Tukey's post hoc test showed significant variations between groups II and I (p = 0.010) for pulse rate and p = 0.001 for FIS, and between groups III and I (p = 0.028) and p = 0.001, respectively. Conclusion: Comparing hand-held video gaming and bubble breath play therapy with traditional TSD technique yielded the best results in reducing anxiety in children aged 6–12 years who underwent dental procedures requiring local anesthesia. Clinical significance: Hand-held video gaming and bubble breath are efficient in children to reduce the dental anxiety.

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