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Effectiveness of Er:YAG Pulse Therapy for Achieving Pre-emptive Dental Analgesia in Children

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Caries, Dental
Interventions
Procedure: Laser analgesic procedure
Procedure: Placebo analgesic procedure
Registration Number
NCT03412721
Lead Sponsor
Plovdiv Medical University
Brief Summary

The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of Er:YAG pulse therapy for achieving pulpal analgesia in pediatric patients and to quantify the duration and extent of any effects assessed.

Design: a randomized split-mouth study with two-way repeated measures design.

Detailed Description

The intention of the technique of "pre-emptive laser analgesia" is to reduce sensation in that small percentage of patients who may experience unpleasant sensations during caries removal. Laser analgesia is a non-invasive, non-thermogenic bio-modulation of the dental pulp reactivity aiming for reduction of impulse formation of the pulpal nociceptors. It is based on the idea that parallel with the ablative high-energy level laser action, simultaneous low level laser therapy (LLLT) may occur. We hypothesize that when operating at pulse energies below the Er:YAG laser ablation threshold of tooth structure, the laser energy leads to loss of impulse conduction of type A-delta nerve fibers in the dental pulp, leading to an analgesic effect.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
41
Inclusion Criteria

Not provided

Exclusion Criteria

Not provided

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
CROSSOVER
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Laser analgesiaLaser analgesic procedureProcedure: Laser analgesic procedure Performing protocol for pre-emptive laser analgesia with Er:YAG laser (Litetouch, Syneron) switched on.
Placebo analgesiaPlacebo analgesic procedureProcedure: Placebo analgesic procedure Performing imitation of laser analgesic protocol with Er:YAG laser (Litetouch, Syneron) switched off - no pulse energy applied.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Pain felt during treatment according to a visual analogue scale1 hour

Reported by the patient at the end of the dental treatment session on a VAS (visual analogue scale), which contains a combination of Numeric Rating Scale (0-10, where 0 means no pain, 10 - worst possible pain) and Wong-Baker Faces Pain Scale, which includes pictures of facial expressions with correlating numbers of 0-10 (0 being 'no hurt' and 10 being 'hurts worst'). The combination allows children to pick a facial expression, that corresponds with their pain and see a number that matches it.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Need for local anesthesia infiltration during the treatment1 hour

Registered with 1=no; 2=yes. Patients who request that the procedure is terminated to administer an anesthetic injection, are asked to rate their level of pain, according to aforementioned visual analogue scale, immediately following termination. The visual analogue scale contains a combination of Numeric Rating Scale (0-10, where 0 means no pain, 10 - worst possible pain) and Wong-Baker Faces Pain Scale, which includes pictures of facial expressions with correlating numbers of 0-10 (0 being 'no hurt' and 10 being 'hurts worst').

Changes in pulpal sensibility to electrical stimuli by electrical pulp tester25 minutes

Evaluated via electrical pulp tester (EPT) 5 minutes before and on the 5th and 20th minute after laser/placebo analgesic procedure. EPT result is a number.

Patient experience during analgesic or placebo procedure5 minutes

evaluated by a patient questionnaire

Pain related behavior evaluated by the Faces, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability Behavioral Pain Rating Scale1 hour

Evaluated by the outcomes assessor. The FLACC scale has five criteria - Faces, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability, which are each assigned a score of 0, 1 or 2. Total score of scale is summed in range 0 to 10, where: 0=relaxed and comfortable; 1-3=mild discomfort; 4-6=moderate pain; 7-10=severe pain.

Dynamics of the heart rate of the patient1 hour

registered throughout the experiment via pulse oximeter

Changes in pulpal sensibility to cold-stimuli by a visual analogue scale25 minutes

Cold-test is applied 4 minutes before and on the 6th and 21st minute after laser/placebo analgesia. Pain is reported by the patient on a VAS (visual analogue scale), which contains a combination of Numeric Rating Scale (0-10, where 0 means no pain, 10 - worst possible pain) and Wong-Baker Faces Pain Scale, which includes pictures of facial expressions with correlating numbers of 0-10 (0 being 'no hurt' and 10 being 'hurts worst').

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Department of Pediatric Dentistry, Faculty of Dental Medicine

🇧🇬

Plovdiv, Bulgaria

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