Half of Norwegian children recall dental sedation

Dental Tribune International

Fri. 31 October 2025

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OSLO, Norway: Alleviating stress for fearful dental patients, especially vulnerable ones such as children, is of paramount concern for dentists. Now, a major Norwegian study has shed new light on how children and teenagers experience conscious sedation in dental care. While most said it made treatment easier, over half still remembered the procedure—raising questions about memory, consent and emotional care during paediatric dental treatment.

As reported on by Dental Tribune International, sedation is a complex issue within dentistry. On the one hand, it is associated with improved long-term oral health outcomes, yet on the other hand, it comes with known environmental impacts.

In the study, researchers from the University of Oslo and the Oral Health Centre of Expertise in Western Norway surveyed more than 7,600 children aged 9 and 17 registered with the public dental service. Among them, just under 1,000 had received conscious sedation, most often with oral midazolam, and were included in the analysis.

Of this group, about two-thirds said sedation made dental treatment easier to undergo. However, one in 12 reported that it made it more difficult to refuse treatment, and more than half retained memories of the procedure. Girls reported statistically significantly higher levels of dental and injection-related fear than boys. The study also found that children with high dental anxiety were both more likely to find sedation helpful and more likely to remember the experience, suggesting that fear may influence how sedation is perceived and recalled.

The findings underline the complexity of paediatric sedation outcomes, challenging assumptions that sedated patients experience full amnesia. The authors stress that even when sedation is used appropriately, children’s autonomy and emotional well-being must remain central to clinical care.

The paper notes that a significant minority of participants did not find sedation beneficial, highlighting the importance of non-pharmacological approaches such as behavioural guidance and communication before resorting to medication. Ethical concerns also arise from the small but notable group of children who felt unable to refuse treatment while sedated.

Conducted in a demographically representative Norwegian county, the study is one of the largest of its kind and offers rare insight into children’s subjective experiences of sedation. The authors call for improved communication, greater integration of psychological support and further research into developing validated methods for capturing children’s voices in dental settings.

The study, titled “Children’s experiences with conscious sedation in dental care: A Norwegian cross-sectional study”, was published online on 22 October 2025 in Acta Odontologica Scandinavica.