Effectivity of Binaural Beats in Reduction of Anxiety during Dental Treatment in Pediatric Patients

Abstract

Context: Over the years, audio analgesia has been gaining popularity as a method of distraction amongst pediatric patients. The present study deals with binaural beats i.e an auditory illusion perceived when two different pure-tone sine waves with less than a 40 Hz difference between them, are presented to a listener dichotically. Depending on the differences between the frequencies, the brainwaves are generated causing effects corresponding to the type of wave. Aim: To evaluate the effectiveness of binaural beats in reduction of anxiety in apprehensive paediatric patients in order to achieve the objective of minimizing requirement of other behaviour management techniques and time for dental treatment procedures. Material & Method: 30 apprehensive, cooperative and non co-operative3-10 year old patients were subjected to binaural beats imposed upon soft music by means of wireless over-the-ear headphones. Pre-Operative, Intra-Operative and Post-Operative sets of Visual Facial Anxiety Scale and Pulse rate were recorded. Results: Binaural beats were effective in reduction of anxiety within 10 minutes in 86.67% of the cases. 93.33% of the cases responded positively to binaural beats by the time of termination of treatment procedure. Conclusion: Binaural Beats can be used effectively as a non-invasive treatment modality to reduce anxiety in apprehensive paediatric patients