NCT05553262

A Protocol to Streamline Dental Care in Autistic Children

A Three-years Project for Assistance and Dental Care of Children With Autistic Spectrum Disorder at the Community Dentistry Unit - Piove di Sacco Hospital (Padua, Italy)

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 170 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Padova · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 4 Years – 13 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The investigators aim at creating a dedicated pathway to allow accessibility to dental care for ASD children within a hospital Dentistry Department, in order to diminish the need for general anesthesia. Visual pedagogy, parent training, a strict schedule for appointments (every two months) spanning over three years and longer duration of dedicated examination are set up for a group of ASD children, whose behavior is compared to that of children seen one or twice a year.

Detailed description

Treated group: Enrollment: caregivers receive instructions and a visual pedagogy aid with instructions for toothbrushing. They complete also enrollment and informed consent forms. At the first visit: caregivers receive a dental mirror to be used at home. Children are free to explore the office and dental room. Subsequent visits, every two months for three years: trials are made to establish contact with children, make them seat at the dentist's chair, execute dental visits and treatments as needed. Control group: subjects (similar inclusion and exclusion criteria) that access the Department for clinical reasons or control visits, but cannot comply with the strict two-months schedule.

Conditions

• Autism Spectrum Disorder

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Behavioral support	Behavioral support as described under 'Arm description'.

Timeline

• Start date: 2019-01-01
• Primary completion: 2021-12-31
• Completion: 2021-12-31
• First posted: 2022-09-23
• Last updated: 2022-09-27

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Italy