Sammenhaeng mellem koncentrationer af cortisol i spyttet og börns adfaerd i tandlaegestolen
Sammanfattning
PURPOSE – To correlate the salivary cortisol levels in children
attending a university dental clinic with their behaviour during
the dental appointment.
METHODS – A prospective study was conducted with 43 sevento
10-year-old children whose behavior during the dental appointment
was assessed using the Frankl scale. Participants
were divided into two groups: (1) cooperative children; and
(2) uncooperative children. All children had four saliva samples
collected as follows: prior to the dental examination (S1);
shortly after the dental examination (S2); 30 minutes after
waking up in the morning after the day of the appointment
(S3); and in the afternoon, 24 hours after the dental appointment
(S4). Salivary cortisol levels were measured by the
chemiluminescent assay method. Statistical analysis included
the Friedman and the Wilcoxon signed rank tests.
RESULTS – For the cooperative group, salivary cortisol levels
were significantly lower at S1 (P = 0.004), S2 (P = 0.006), and
S4 (P = 0.001) compared to S3. For the uncooperative group,
salivary cortisol levels were significantly higher at S1 compared
to S2 (P = 0.005).
CONCLUSIONS – Uncooperative children presented high levels
of salivary cortisol prior to and shortly after the dental
appointment. The period anticipating the consultation was
considered highly stressful.