IPADS BETTER THAN SEDATIVES FOR KIDS AWAITING SURGERY: STUDY

The drug and the iPads worked equally well at soothing nerves, but the parents of kids playing with iPads were less anxious than those in the other group. The nurses in the tablet group also thought that the anesthesia went better than it did for the children taking sedatives.

How do games and puzzles on a tablet reduce anxiety? Study lead author Dominique Chassard, a physician and researcher with the Université Hospital of Lyon, says, “All forms of distraction decrease anxiety. At this time, tablets are very familiar for children and thus the best way to distract children’s attention from medical environment.”