Home ⟩Research ⟩Completed Projects

Sensory Adapted Dental Environments to Enhance Oral Care for Children (SADE-2)

SIEFL Core ⟩ SADE Lab ⟩TEM Lab ⟩

The SADE-2 study is a randomized clinical trial of 184 ethnically diverse children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We are investigating the efficacy of a sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) compared to a regular dental environment (RDE) to decrease children’s physiological anxiety, distress behavior, perception of pain, and sensory discomfort during a dental cleaning. If successful, this intervention has the potential to revolutionize clinic-based dental care for the growing population of children with ASD. It is an innovative solution that will enable dentists to more readily perform standard clinic-based procedures for children with ASD.

Supplements

Awarded through NIH’s Diversity in Research initiative, the 1U01 DE024978-01S1 supplement will provide a research immersion opportunity in the development of a career trajectory as a research scientist. Ms. Como will receive training and gain experience in research methods, interdisciplinary collaboration, grantsmanship, and dissemination through presentations and publications.

The 3U01 DE024978-04S2 supplement is for a study to examine the prevalence and patterns of sensory processing dysfunction in a population of children with Down syndrome and its relationship to oral care challenges, and to determine the feasibility of adapting the sensory adapted dental environment (SADE) protocol for children with Down syndrome.

Funding

Type	Source	Number	Amount
Federal	NIH / NIDCR (Supplement)	3U01 DE024978-04S2	$375,251
Federal	NIH / NIDCR (Diversity Supplement)	1U01 DE024978-01S1	$161,077
Federal	NIH / National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)	1U01 DE024978-01	$3,246,693

USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
1540 Alcazar Street, CHP 133, Los Angeles, CA 90089-9003

ACOTE accreditation | NBCOT certification

The USC entry-level master’s degree program (cost of attendance) is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education® (ACOTE®) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). The USC entry-level doctorate in occupational therapy (OTD) degree program (cost of attendance) has applied for accreditation and has been granted Preaccreditation Status by ACOTE®. View our program’s ACOTE® standards public data. ACOTE® c/o the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.®, 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E, Bethesda, MD 20814, (301) 652-AOTA, www.acoteonline.org. The program must complete an on-site evaluation and be granted Accreditation Status before its graduates will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Inc.® (NBCOT®).

Professional program graduates are eligible to apply for certification by National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Inc.® (NBCOT®), nbcot.org. Program results from the NBCOT® can be found online at www.nbcot.org/Educators-Folder/SchoolPerformance.