Influence of past advanced behavior guidance experience on parental acceptance for autistic individuals in the dental setting.

This study looked at how parents of autistic children feel about different ways dentists can help their child stay calm during dental treatment. Researchers asked 141 parents to watch videos of three methods: using gentle restraints, giving calming medicine, or putting the child to sleep for treatment. Parents who had used these methods before were more accepting of them than parents who hadn't. The gentle restraint method was most preferred overall.

This cross-sectional study examined parental acceptance of advanced behavior guidance techniques (BGTs) for dental treatment in autistic individuals. The study included 141 parents from Thailand, divided into experience (n=81) and no-experience (n=60) groups based on prior BGT exposure. Parents rated acceptance of three techniques after watching video clips: passive restraint by device (PRBD), oral sedation (OS), and general anesthesia (GA). Results showed PRBD was most accepted, followed by GA and OS.

Parents with previous BGT experience showed significantly higher acceptance rates across all three techniques compared to those without experience. The study utilized visual analog scales and qualitative feedback to assess parental perspectives on these dental management approaches for autistic patients.

Clinicians should consider discussing previous BGT experiences with parents and providing educational materials about different techniques. Prior positive experiences may facilitate acceptance of future treatments. PRBD may be a preferred starting point for behavior management discussions with parents of autistic patients requiring dental care.

Single-center study from Thailand limits generalizability to other populations and healthcare systems. Cross-sectional design prevents assessment of how acceptance changes over time. Video-based evaluation may not fully represent real clinical scenarios parents would experience.

Autism is a lifelong neurodevelopmental disorder that poses challenges during dental treatment. Advanced behavior guidance techniques (BGTs) have been used to provide dental care for autistic people who have specific characteristics and complex dental treatment. This study was conducted to evaluate parental acceptance and analyze parents' opinions of advanced BGTs during dental treatment in autistic people. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 141 parents of autistic people from the Mahidol Dental Hospital and the Autism online community.

Informed consent was obtained before enrolling participants in the study. All parents were asked to rate their acceptance after watching VDO clips: passive restraint by device (PRBD), oral sedation (OS), and general anesthesia (GA) to evaluate parental acceptance of advanced BGTs through an online questionnaire survey. The online questionnaire included a visual analog scale (VAS) and open-ended questions to collect their opinions on each advanced BGT. Participants were categorized into two subgroups as follows: 81 in the "Experience group" and 60 in the "No experience group" according to their autistic people' advanced BGT experience.

Friedman's two-way analysis of variance and the Mann-Whitney U test were used for statistical analyses. Open-ended questions were analyzed using quantitative content analysis. PRBD was ranked the highest, followed by GA and OS. Parents in the "Experience group" rated significantly higher acceptance of their BGT experience than parents in the "No experience group" in all the three advanced BGTs.

All advanced BGTs were particularly accepted in this study. Previous experience of advanced BGTs had an influence on parental acceptance. Parents commented on their opinions toward each advanced BGT with a variety of perspectives. The protocol was approved by the ethical committee of the Faculty of Dentistry/Faculty of Pharmacy, Mahidol University (COA.No.MU-DT/PY-IRB 2021/022.1702) and was registered with Thai Clinical Trials Registry (TCTR20220521001).