Parental acceptance of advanced behaviour management techniques in paediatric dentistry in families with different cultural background

PURPOSE: To investigate the differences of parental acceptance of advanced behaviour management techniques (BMT) in different cultural backgrounds (Germany vs. Jordan). METHODS: A convenience sample of 100 parents each of paediatric patients at the University of Greifswald/Germany and Jordan University/Jordan completed a questionnaire to rate their acceptance of four advanced BMT (passive restraint, active restraint, nitrous oxide sedation, and general anaesthesia) using a five-point Likert scale. RESULTS: In both groups, nitrous oxide sedation was the most accepted advanced BMT (mean 3.78 ± 1.34/3.22 ± 1.50, respectively). The least acceptable technique in Germany was passive restraint (2.05 ± 1.18) and in Jordan general anaesthesia (2.11 ± 1.30). The parents in Germany are significantly more accepting of nitrous oxide sedation than are parents in Jordan (p = 0.010), while parents in Jordan are more willing to accept passive restraint (p = 0.001). The acceptance of all advanced BMT increased significantly in both groups when the treatment was urgent. CONCLUSIONS: Parental cultural background and the urgency of the treatment affect the acceptance of different BMT. Moreover, the parental attitude to the pharmacological technique has changed, as nitrous oxide sedation generally appears to be the most preferred advanced technique in both groups.