Dentapen® vs. Traditional Syringes for Child Dental Anxiety

Child Anxiety During Administration of Anesthesia Delivered by Dentapen® Technique Versus Traditional Syringes Among a Group of Pediatric Dental Patients: Randomized Clinical Trial

This study aims to compare two different methods of giving local anesthesia (numbing medicine) to children during dental treatment. The two methods are:

Dentapen® - a computer-controlled, pen-like device that delivers the numbing medicine slowly and steadily.

Traditional syringe - the standard metal syringe commonly used in dental clinics.

The main question is: Does using the Dentapen® device reduce child anxiety during the injection compared to the traditional syringe?

The study will include children aged 6-8 years who need to have an upper primary (baby) molar tooth extracted. The child's heart rate will be measured before and after the injection, and the child's anxiety level will be assessed immediately after treatment using the Wong-Baker Faces Scale (a picture scale showing different levels of worry or fear).

Participants will be randomly assigned (like flipping a coin) to receive the injection either with the Dentapen® or with the traditional syringe. Neither the child nor the person measuring the outcomes will know which device was used. The dentist giving the injection cannot be blinded because the devices look different.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Child Dental Anxiety
• Intervention / Treatment: Device: Dentapen®; Device: Traditional Dental Syringe

Detailed Description

This is a single-center, prospective, parallel-group, randomized clinical trial with a 1:1 allocation ratio, designed to compare child anxiety associated with local anesthetic administration using a computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery (CCLAD) system (Dentapen®) versus a traditional aspirating syringe. The study will be conducted at the Department of Pediatric Dentistry and Dental Public Health, Faculty of Dentistry, Cairo University, Egypt. The operator cannot be blinded due to the distinct appearance of the devices; however, participants (who will be supine with eyes closed during the procedure), the outcome assessor (who will evaluate recorded video footage cropped to obscure the injection site and the hand holding the device), and the statistician will be blinded.

Intervention Details:

Experimental (Dentapen®): The CCLAD device (Dentapen®, Septodont, Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, France) will be used in its ramp-up mode, which delivers a gradual, slow initial flow of anesthetic that increases to a constant flow over five seconds. This mode operates at the device's slowest speed (1 mL/90 s) at maximum force. Standard disposable 30-gauge, 20 mm needles and standard anesthetic cartridges (1.7 mL of 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine, Artpharmadent, Egypt) will be used. The technique will consist of a buccal infiltration followed by an intrapapillary infiltration.

Comparator (Traditional Syringe): A side-loading stainless steel aspirating syringe (Medesy® 4957/1, Italy) will be used with an identical anesthetic cartridge and needle (30-gauge, 20 mm). The same infiltration technique (buccal, then intrapapillary) will be performed, with manual control of injection speed and pressure.

Standardized Clinical Procedure: For all participants, the injection site will be dried and topical anesthetic (20% benzocaine gel, Iolite gel, Dharma Research Inc., USA) will be applied for one minute. Anesthetic will be deposited for the buccal infiltration at the depth of the buccal vestibule over the apices of the target upper primary first molar, with the needle bevel oriented toward the bone and aspiration performed prior to deposition. Intrapapillary infiltration will be performed one minute later, with the needle inserted 1-2 mm into the mesial and distal interdental papillae. The total volume of anesthetic and the rate of deposition will be recorded for each participant. Anesthetic efficacy will be confirmed using both subjective (patient report) and objective (dental probe) methods 3-5 minutes post-injection, prior to the dental extraction.

Outcome Assessment Methodology:

Primary Outcome (Child Anxiety): Measured immediately post-treatment using the Wong-Baker FACES® Pain Rating Scale (WBFS). The scale presents six faces ranging from 0 (no hurt/neutral expression) to 10 (hurts worst/extreme fear). The child will be shown the scale and asked to point to the face that best represents their feeling during the injection.

Secondary Outcome (Heart Rate): Measured in beats per minute (BPM) using a pulse oximeter (Fernández et al., 2021). Heart rate will be recorded twice: once immediately before the topical anesthetic application (baseline) and again immediately after the complete deposition of the local anesthetic.

Randomization and Allocation Concealment: A co-supervisor not involved in clinical procedures will generate a simple 1:1 random sequence using an online randomizer (random.org). Allocation concealment will be maintained using sequentially numbered, opaque, sealed envelopes prepared by the supervisors. The participant will draw an envelope immediately before the procedure.

Data Management and Statistical Analysis: All data will be recorded on paper case report forms, double-entered, and stored in a password-protected, encrypted online repository (Google Drive). Statistical analysis will be performed using SPSS (Version 24) and Minitab (Version 16). Normality of continuous data will be assessed using Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk tests. Baseline characteristics and outcomes will be compared between groups using independent samples t-tests for normally distributed data or Mann-Whitney U tests for non-normal data. Categorical data will be analyzed using the chi-square or Fisher's exact test. The significance level will be set at α = 0.05.

Monitoring and Harm Management: The main supervisor will monitor the trial for protocol adherence, data integrity, and patient safety. Any adverse events, including but not limited to local complications (e.g., hematoma, paresthesia, needle fracture, dry socket, postoperative soft tissue injury) or systemic complications (e.g., allergic reaction, psychogenic reaction, local anesthetic toxicity), will be managed immediately according to the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) guidelines. The trial will be paused for any serious adverse event and reported to the institutional ethics committee.

Ethics and Dissemination: Ethical approval will be obtained from the Research Ethics Committee, Faculty of Dentistry, Cairo University. The study will be conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. Written informed consent will be obtained from each participant's parent or legal guardian, and verbal assent will be obtained from the child. Confidentiality will be maintained by assigning unique participant codes. The results of this trial will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal and presented as part of a Master's thesis in Pediatric Dentistry. No external funding has been received; the trial is self-funded by the principal investigator.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 42
• Phase: Not Applicable

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Children aged between 6 and 8 years.
• Cooperative children.
• Children having normal intellectual development.
• Children willing to provide assent and parent willing to provide informed consent.
• Healthy children with no systemic problems according to parental history.
• First dental visit.
• Children with bilaterally maxillary primary molars indicated for extraction.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Children with medical, physical, or mental conditions.
• Children requiring emergency dental treatment (cellulitis, abscess).
• Children whose parents refuse to sign the informed consent.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Double

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Dentapen® Technique; Children in this arm receive local anesthesia using the Dentapen® (Septodont, France), a cordless computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery (CCLAD) system. The ramp-up mode is used to gradually initiate anesthetic flow. Anesthetic solution: 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine (Artpharma, Egypt) in a 1.7 mL cartridge. A 30-gauge, 20 mm short needle is used. Technique: buccal infiltration followed by intrapapillary infiltration into mesial and distal papillae. Heart rate is measured before and after injection using a pulse oximeter. Child anxiety is assessed immediately post-treatment using the Wong-Baker Faces Scale (WBFS). After confirming anesthesia (subjective patient report and objective dental probe testing), the maxillary primary molar is extracted with minimal trauma using luxation.	Device: Dentapen®; Cordless computer-controlled local anesthetic delivery (CCLAD) system (Septodont, Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, France). Uses ramp-up mode: slowest speed (1 mL/90 s) at maximum force with gradual flow over 5 seconds. Compatible with standard 1.7 mL anesthetic cartridges (4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine) and disposable 30-gauge, 20 mm needles. Delivers buccal and intrapapillary infiltration for maxillary primary molar extraction.
Active Comparator: Traditional Syringe; Children in this arm receive local anesthesia using a conventional side-loading stainless steel aspirating syringe (Medesy® 4957/1, Italy). Anesthetic solution: 4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine (Artpharma, Egypt) in a 1.7 mL cartridge. A 30-gauge, 20 mm short, side-beveled, sterile disposable needle is attached. Technique: buccal infiltration (needle bevel oriented toward bone, aspiration performed, solution deposited slowly over one minute) followed by intrapapillary infiltration (needle inserted 1-2 mm into mesial and distal papillae, solution injected slowly over one minute). Heart rate is measured before and after injection using a pulse oximeter. Child anxiety is assessed immediately post-treatment using the Wong-Baker Faces Scale (WBFS). After confirming anesthesia (subjective patient report and objective dental probe testing), the maxillary primary molar is extracted with minimal trauma using luxation.	Device: Traditional Dental Syringe; Conventional side-loading stainless steel aspirating syringe (Medesy® 4957/1, Italy). Requires manual control of flow rate and pressure by the operator. Uses standard 1.7 mL anesthetic cartridges (4% articaine with 1:100,000 epinephrine) and disposable 30-gauge, 20 mm side-beveled needles. Delivers buccal and intrapapillary infiltration for maxillary primary molar extraction.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Child Anxiety	Child anxiety assessed immediately after anesthetic injection and tooth extraction using the Wong-Baker Faces Scale (WBFS). The scale consists of six faces representing increasing levels of anxiety from 0 (no anxiety) to 10 (highest anxiety).	Immediately after treatment (within 5 minutes of completing anesthetic injection and extraction)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Heart Rate	Heart rate measured before and after anesthetic injection using a pulse oximeter	Baseline (immediately before anesthetic injection) and immediately after completion of anesthetic injection

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Cairo University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): September 22, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): November 23, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 14, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: April 21, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 27, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): April 29, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 5, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: April 29, 2026
• Last Verified: April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Heart Rate; Dental Anxiety; Local Anesthesia; Traditional Syringe; Primary Molar Extraction; Computer-Controlled Local Anesthesia Delivery; Dentapen
• Other Study ID Numbers: 181124

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No