Familiarity, Utilization, and Perceived Effectiveness of Sensory-Based Modifications in Paediatric Dental Care

Background Sensory stimuli difficulties occur across paediatric populations and are associated with oral care challenges. Despite increasing attention to sensory-related factors in dentistry, little is known about the real-world use of sensory-based modifications (SBMs). This study examined dental professionals’ familiarity with, utilization of, and perceived effectiveness of SBMs during paediatric dental care. Methods A cross-sectional survey of US dental professionals treating children used convenience and snowball sampling to assess familiarity, utilization, and perceived effectiveness of SBMs. Descriptive statistics summarized responses; logistic regression models examined associations between provider characteristics and SBM familiarity and utilization, adjusting for specialty. Results Among respondents ( n = 550), most were paediatric dentists (76%) with an average of 17 years of clinical experience. Participants reported high familiarity with single-modality and sensory-focused previsit questionnaire SBMs (≥65%). Among those familiar, nearly 50% reported using SBMs at least half the time in practice, most frequently for children with special healthcare needs (≥88%). SBM users perceived them as moderately-extremely effective (>85%) and endorsed the importance of addressing sensory-related barriers in practice (≥95%). Greater SBM utilization was associated with frequent treatment of children with special healthcare needs (aORs = 1.7-2.7 across modalities), while providers with more years in practice had higher odds of utilizing a sensory-adapted dental environment (aOR = 3.4). Private practice was also associated with increased use of select SBMs (aORs = 1.9-4.3). Conclusion In our sample, SBMs were widely recognized and positively perceived, but inconsistently implemented, particularly for comprehensive approaches including sensory-adapted dental environments and sensory-focused previsit questionnaires. These results highlight an awareness-implementation gap and the need for targeted uptake strategies. Clinical relevance Integrating sensory-informed strategies into dental care may improve patient experience, reduce distress, and enhance equitable access to paediatric dental services. Future research should identify implementation barriers and facilitators to support broader implementation of SBMs in clinical practice.