Scottish Dentists To Make Dental Checkups More Fun For Kids

Thu, 06 May 2010

Dentists in Scotland are to teach children relaxing breathing techniques during treatment under strange new guidelines.

A new 120-page document released under the Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness Programme (SDCEP) urges dentists to adopt new "behavioural management" techniques to ensure that children trust them to carry out dental treatment, and are not left with long-term physiological problems.

These techniques include comparing the needle of a syringe to a cat’s whisker and nicknaming their drills "Mr Whizzy" to make them appear less threatening to children.

According to the guidance, which is being sent to all NHS dentists working in primary care across Scotland, the sight of syringes and surgical instruments at clinics may cause children to "develop mistrust phobia which can be very difficult to resolve".

The document reminds dentists to make eye contact with children, encourages them to "say something to make them smile" and advises them to avoid "sleight of hand" when administering anaesthetic.

It also states: "Teach the child how to manage their anxiety, principally with breathing but also using progressive muscle relaxation and other techniques such as guided imagery."

The SDCEP said that a negative experience at the dentist at an early age is one of reasons cited by many adults for avoiding dental checkups .

The SDCEP is an initiative of the National Dental Advisory Committee (NDAC) in partnership with NHS Education for Scotland.
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