Effect of Sensory Adapted Dental Environment (SADE) on physiological and behavioral parameters related to stress and anxiety in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) undergoing dental treatment: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BackgroundChildren with autism exhibit a higher general and dental anxiety, due to altered sensory sensibilities.AimThis current systematic review aims to evaluate the effectiveness of Sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) over regular dental environment (RDE) on behavioral, physiological stress and overt anxiety in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).Materials and methodsProspero registered (CRD42024508336). PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus databases are searched from years January 1, 1980-January 1, 2024 using pre-defined search strategy.ResultsA total of 269 titles, were obtained from the included databases after application of filters, exclusion of duplicates and reviews and irrelevant articles led to the final inclusion of 12 articles for full text screening from which, three studies sustained the targeted PICO search.ConclusionSkin conductance level (parameter indicating physiological stress) is lower in SADE environment in children with ASD, other behavior stress related parameters there is no significant difference between SADE and RDE environments.