Influence of Child’s Temperament on Behaviour Management Problems in the Dental Office: A Literature Review

Abstract

Background: A child’s temperament could have an influence on his/her behaviour in the dental environment. This review aims to present the main temperament surveys and their clinical use and to discuss the relationship between certain temperament dimensions and Dental Behaviour Management Problems (DBMP). Methods: A literature search was conducted in Medline/PubMed, ScienceDirect, Wiley Online Library and Cochrane library electronic databases for publications, up to June 2022, investigating the link between child’s temperament and DBMP. Results: From 733 potentially eligible studies, 12 were included in qualitative synthesis. Conclusion: According to studies using the Child Behaviour Questionnaire (CBQ) scale, the most impactful dimensions are activity, extraversion and surgency, high-intensity pleasure and attention control. For those using the Emotionality–Activity–Sociability (EAS) scale, emotionality and shyness have a statistically significant positive linear correlation with dental anxiety and DBMP. It has yet to be determined whether the use and interpretation of these questionnaires can be carried out in a daily clinical situation as an aid to sharpen the indications for the several levels of sedation.