Evaluation of the effectiveness of photobiomodulation therapy as an alternative method to local anesthesia injection in pediatric dentistry.

Background: The idea of receiving local anesthesia (LA) via an injection is a major source of dental fear and anxiety. In children, dental anxiety is considered the main reason for avoiding dental treatments. Moreover, there are potential complications during/after LA administration. Thus, it is necessary to search for painless, low-risk, and nonpharmacological anesthetic approaches.

Aim: This study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of photobiomodulation (PBM) therapy as an alternative method to LA injection for conventional restorative treatments in pediatric patients.

Settings and design: This was a split-mouth randomized clinical study.

Materials and methods: The study included 15 children between 6 and 12 years old. Each child had 2 similar contralateral caries lesions in the first permanent molars in the same jaw, total (30) teeth. For each child, one tooth was treated under conventional LA injection and the other was treated under PBM-based anesthesia. The Wong-Baker's Faces Pain Scale was used for reporting the pain and discomfort levels at the end of the treatments.

Statistical analysis: Data statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare between the groups.

Results: The PBM-based anesthesia group recorded a mean pain score of 2.27 ± 1.28. The conventional LA group recorded a mean pain score of 1.73 ± 0.7. The difference between the groups was not statistically significant (P = 0.168).

Conclusions: PBM-based anesthesia may be an optional alternative to LA injection for conventional restorative treatments in children with dental anxiety, needle phobia, or special needs, and it deserves further studies and improvement.