Improving Adolescent-dentist Interaction Through Digital Technology
Improving Adolescent-dentist Interaction Through Digital Technology
The aim of the present study is to assess the impact of a digital tool on the interaction
 between the dentist and the adolescent patient, concerning the level of dental anxiety and
 communication. To achieve this purpose, a Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial will be
 performed using a short version of e-SAID (Survey of Anxiety and Information for Dentists) in
 Portuguese (FALE). That is, the intervention to be tested is an application usage, which will
 contain a questionnaire with questions supposedly made by the dentist, about feelings
 regarding the dental appointment and preferences for coping with dental treatment. Thus, the
 use of this digital tool aims to facilitate communication, favoring the adolescent-dentist
 relationship, and establishing empathy.
The target population consists of patients between 10 and 19 years old, attending the
 Adolescent Clinic in the Dental School of the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), campus
 of Recife. The sample will consist of 184 adolescents, 92 in each group (intervention and
 control). Randomization will be stratified according to sex, age and presence or absence of
 dental anxiety. In the waiting room, before the dental appointment, the adolescents in the
 intervention group (IG) will use the FALE application to answer the questionnaire and assess
 the level of anxiety. Those in the control group (CG) will only record their level of
 anxiety. The undergraduates responsible for attending the IG participants will receive, prior
 to dental care, a report of the answers given by the adolescents through the application.
 During the dental consultation, a psychologist, who will be observing the care, will evaluate
 the adolescents behavior, considering cooperation. After the appointment, the adolescent will
 evaluate how much he/she felt benefited by the use of the app; how he evaluates the
 communication between him/her and the dentist; if he/she thinks that the app contributed with
 this communication; his/her satisfaction with dental treatment; and his/her satisfaction with
 the undergraduate attendance. The undergraduate will also evaluate his/her level of
 satisfaction with the application's use; how he/she evaluates the communication between
 him/her and the adolescent patient; how much the application has helped with this
 communication; and the degree of patient's cooperation during the dental consultation.
 Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis will be performed using appropriate tests
 through the Statistical Package for Social Sciences software version 21 and significance
 level of 5%.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  Brazilian adolescents literate in Portuguese

 -  Brazilian adolescents able to use smartphone

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  Adolescents with intellectual, sensory or physical disabilities

 -  Adolescents not capable to read and write/type