Emotional contagion of anxiety carer ‐ Child in pediatric dentistry

Objective To evaluate the Emotional Contagion of Anxiety existance between carers and their children. Methods 41 children (ages from 3 to 6) that were present in Paediatric Dentistry appointments at Clínica Dentária Universitária Egas Moniz and their respective carers were surveyed, using a demographic questionnaire and two instruments to measure the anxiety suffered in dental appointment settings; Modified Venham Picture Test (children) and the Portuguese Version of Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (carers). The data obtained were submitted to analysis with the 21st version of Statistical package for the Social Sciences, specifically recurring to, Spearman's Roh, Shapiro‐Wilk e Mann‐Whitney Tests, being considered a 0.05 level of significance. Results No significant correlation was found between the anxiety suffered by the children and the anxiety suffered by the carers with most of the children in the study (56.1%) considered free of anxiety and most of the carers in the study considered as moderately anxious (56.1%). On the same record we point the fact that children manifest slightly more anxious in follow‐up appointments. Conclusion Even though no Emotional Anxiety Contagion was found on the studied sample, it is undeniable that the anxiety exists, especially in a Dentistry appointment setting.