About this trial
Dental anxiety and uncooperative behavior frequently interfere with the successful delivery of dental treatment in children and may increase the need for pharmacological behavior management. Storytelling is a widely used non-pharmacological behavior guidance technique that can improve participants' familiarity with the dental environment and enhance cooperation. Recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI) enable the development of personalized storybooks tailored to each participant's individual characteristics and preferences, which may improve engagement with behavior guidance interventions.
This randomized controlled trial aims to compare the effectiveness of three behavior guidance approaches in pediatric participants receiving dental treatment: (1) an AI-generated personalized dental storybook, (2) a standard dental storybook, and (3) standard behavior guidance alone. Eligible participants will be randomly allocated to one of the three study groups. The AI-generated storybook will be individually designed according to each participant's characteristics and interests, whereas the standard storybook will contain the same dental theme without personalization. Participants in the control group will receive routine non-pharmacological behavior guidance used in pediatric dental practice. Behavioral cooperation, dental anxiety, treatment acceptance, and other prespecified outcomes will be assessed using validated measurement tools before and during dental treatment.
Eligibility criteria
Qualifiers
Participants classified as Frankl II (Negative) or Frankl III (Positive) according to the Frankl Behavior Rating Scale.
Systemically healthy participants classified as American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Physical Status I.
Participants with at least two primary molars requiring Class I occlusal restorations for superficial carious lesions that do not require local anesthesia.
Parents or legal guardians who voluntarily provide written informed consent for participation in the study.
Disqualifiers
Participants younger than 4 years or older than 7 years of age.
Participants with systemic diseases or developmental delay.
Participants with a current psychiatric disorder or who have been under psychiatric follow-up within the previous 6 months.
Participants receiving psychotropic medication.
Trial design
Treatments tested in this trial
- AI-Generated Personalized Dental Storybook
- Standard Dental Storybook
- Standard Behavior Guidance