Objectives: This study aimed to explore use of NPBMT and related factors among Sri Lankan seventh semester dental undergraduates.

Materials and Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional pilot study was conducted among seventh semester dental undergraduates who completed paediatric dentistry clinical rotation at the Faculty of Dental Sciences, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and 48 completed questionnaires were analyzed. Moreover, 36 parents whose children received NPBMT provided their feedback. Data entry and analysis were conducted using IBM SPSS-26, (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) statistical software package. Frequency distributions were presented and associations were assessed using Fisher’s exact test.

Results: The majority (75.0%) of seventh semester dental undergraduates used NPBMT. ‘Tell-show do’ technique (41.7%), followed by distraction with questioning and storytelling (16.7%) reported to be the most used whilst distraction by a ‘video-clip’ was less used (2.1%). Child’s past dental experience and language of communication were identified as barriers for effective practice of NPBMT. There were no significant differences in the most used NPBMT by gender of the dental undergraduate (p = 0.917) and gender of the paediatric patient (p = 0.229). There was no significant difference in most used NPBMT by the type of paediatric dental treatment categorized as preventive, curative and invasive (p=0.721). Almost all parents provided positive feedback for using NPBMT for their children.

Conclusions: Sri Lankan dental undergraduates practiced simple NPBMT techniques such as ‘tell-show-do’ and ‘distraction with questions and storytelling’ compared to other techniques for a wide range paediatric dental treatments.