Volume 30, Issue 174, August 2026

Digital Support for Psychological Preparation of Children for Dental Treatment: A Literature Review

Gabriela Królczyk^1♦, Stanisław Janczarski², Jakub Papierz², Erwin Górski², Julia Banaszczyk², Katarzyna Cybulska², Aleksandra Pietrzyk³, Mikołaj Cezary Krajewski⁴

¹Zespół Przychodni Specjalistycznych Sp. z o.o., 1 Skłodowskiej-Curie Street, 33-100 Tarnów, Poland
²Institute of Dentistry of the Central Clinical Hospital of the Medical University of Łódź, Pomorska 251, 92-213 Łódź, Poland
³Centralna Wojskowa Przychodnia Lekarska CePeLek SPZOZ, 78 Koszykowa Street, 00-911 Warszawa, Poland
⁴Comenius University Bratislava, Šafárikovo námestie 6, 814 99 Bratislava, Slovakia

^♦Corresponding author
Gabriela Królczyk, Zespół Przychodni Specjalistycznych Sp. z o.o., 1 Skłodowskiej-Curie Street, 33-100 Tarnów, Poland

ABSTRACT

Dental anxiety in children is still a major clinical concern, frequently causing treatment avoidance, poor oral health, and uncooperative behavior in the dental office. Commonly used non-pharmacological behavior management techniques, such as “Tell-Show-Do” and passive distraction, are often challenged in managing modern, digitally native pediatric patients. This literature review intends to determine the effectiveness and neurological foundation of digital psychological therapies in alleviating dental phobia among children. The purpose of this research is to gather information about the use of mobile apps before a visit, augmented reality, audiovisual distraction therapy, and virtual reality. This research proposes protocols on using digital technology within modern pediatrics. Research has shown that electronic devices that change behavior may result in significant decreases in self-reported anxiety scores, physiological markers of stress (eg, heart rate and salivary cortisol), and patient compliance with stressful procedures. AR, along with interactive pre-appointment software, can complement home surroundings in facilitating cognitive familiarization and systematic desensitization. Immersive virtual reality can be used to overcome attentional barriers in dentistry treatment sessions through blocking the mental processing of pain and sound stimuli. Nonetheless, the area has several problems, including cybersickness, sanitization issues, cost, and age-related cognitive restrictions. Digital Psychological Preparation is an effective, noninvasive tool for Pediatric Dentistry. Although immersive technologies are successful in the Short Term, Standardized Clinical Trials Are Required to determine long-term cognitive outcomes.

Keywords: dental anxiety; pediatric dentistry; behavior guidance; virtual reality; augmented reality; distraction techniques; digital health

Medical Science, 2026, 30, e160ms3961

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Published: 23 August 2026