Impact of passive music intervention in subjects with self-reported moderate to high dental anxiety undergoing ultrasonic scaling procedure

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the impact of passive music intervention in patients with moderate to high dental anxiety undergoing ultrasonic scaling procedure. Eighty healthy subjects with an anxiety score of 13-25 by Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) were recruited into study and control groups. Study group of forty subjects underwent ultrasonic scaling procedure with pre-recorded instrumental music intervention. Forty subjects in control group received the same dental treatment without music intervention. Physiologic parameters such as pulse rate (PR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were recorded twice (before and at the end of procedure) for both groups. Dental anxiety experience was recorded using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for all the subjects at the end of study program. Repeated measure analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test the significant mean difference between pre- and post-measurements of all clinical parameters among study and control groups. Independent samples t-test was applied to analyze VAS inter-group significance. The mean values of PR (pre and post) as well as SBP and DBP (pre and post) were statistically significant for study group as compared to control group. Mean values of PR (pre and post) and SBP and DBP (pre and post) showed statistically significant reduction in study group compared to control group. Post-therapy VAS score was significantly lower in the study group as compared to the control group. P-value was maintained at < 0.05. Music intervention during ultrasonic procedure helps reduce dental anxiety in subjects with moderate to high dental anxiety levels.