Prevalence of dental anxiety and associations with oral health, psychological distress, avoidance and anticipated pain in adolescence: a cross-sectional study based on the Tromsø study, Fit Futures

Investigating hope in oral health promotion for adolescents: an exploratory study based on observations at the dental clinic

Introduction

Maintaining well-being is crucial, especially in challenging conditions, considering the common public health issue of dental caries. Within the context of adolescent oral health, this research explores the techniques employed by dental professionals to potentially foster hope -a positive manner that promotes well-being- in adolescents during consultations, opening a window into the realm of patient engagement and well-being.

Materials and methods

Data were collected through observations conducted at public dental clinics in Norway, with the participation of three dental professionals and four adolescents between the ages of 12 and 15 years. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Practices were observed from dental professionals in their interactions with adolescents, which align with features of hope.

Result

Three core themes were identified: (1) bonding strategies; (2) verbal and non-verbal strategies for creating positive relationships; and (3) adolescents' empowerment in dental consultations.

Conclusion

Although a new concept within oral health promotion, it seems that dental professionals in this study were observed to be facilitating hope in adolescents when they were providing their dental care. Consideration should be given to the potential for future approaches to be developed for use in dental consultations to facilitate hope strategically. While these approaches are likely to contribute to improving patient-centredness, consideration is needed of challenges and barriers to their implementation.

Exploring avoidance of dental care due to dental fear and economic burden -A cross-sectional study in a national sample of younger adults in Norway

AIM

To assess the prevalence of dental avoidance due to dental fear and economic burden and its distribution by utilization of dental care and socio-behavioural characteristics.

METHOD

A sample of 9052 Norwegian adults aged 25-35 years was invited to participate, and 2551 completed electronic questionnaires regarding lifetime prevalence of dental avoidance due to fear and last year prevalence of dental avoidance due to economic burden.

RESULTS

Cancelled- and avoided ordering appointments due to fear amounted to 14.7% and 30.5%, respectively. Avoidance of dental visits due to cost was 37.7%. Frequency of cancelled appointments due to fear was 30% and 16.6% among participants attending dental care several times annually and seldom, respectively. Multiple logistic regression revealed that avoiding dental visits due to cost was less likely among participants with higher household income (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.3-0.5) and more likely among participants with dental care need (OR 1.8, 95% CI 1.2-2.7). Cancelled and avoided appointments due to fear was most likely among those with need for dental care and lower education. Early unpleasant experience with dental care remained a covariate of avoidance behaviour due to fear.

CONCLUSION

14.7%, 30.5%, and 37.7% confirmed cancelled appointments due to fear, avoided ordering appointments due to fear, and avoided visiting the dentist due to cost. Avoiding dental care due to fear and economic burden was more and less common among participants with respectively, frequent and seldom use of dental care. Dental avoidance behaviours were highest among socially disadvantaged groups, indicating a hole in the welfare state model that needs political consideration.

Association between self-reported dental fear and exposure to violence among adolescents-A population-based study

BACKGROUND

The etiology of dental fear (DF) is multifactorial and involves other contributing factors than dental traumatic experiences.

AIM

To study, among adolescents, associations between DF and exposure to child physical abuse (CPA), intimate partner violence (IPV), and bullying.

DESIGN

We extracted data from a population-based survey of 4977 adolescents who were 15-17 years old in 2017. The questionnaire queried socioeconomic background factors, DF, self-perceived oral health, general health, and exposure to child abuse. To estimate associations between DF and exposure to child abuse, we used multivariate logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Overall, 8.2% reported DF, girls (10.5%) reported DF significantly more often than boys (5%), and adolescents not identifying themselves as girl or boy reported the highest prevalence of DF (25.5%; p < .001). 15.3% had been exposed to child physical abuse; 11.1%, to IPV; and 11.2%, to bullying. Experiences of IPV and bullying, but not physical abuse, were statistically significantly associated with DF. The odds of developing DF for adolescents exposed to any type of violence was 1.9 times the odds for adolescents with no exposure to child abuse.

CONCLUSION

Exposure to violence is associated with dental fear in adolescents.

Development and Testing of an Interpretational Bias Measure of Dental Anxiety

Objectives

We hypothesized that individuals with dental care-related anxiety and fear would interpret ambiguous dental situations more negatively than non-anxious individuals. The objectives of these studies were to develop and test a Measure of Dental Anxiety Interpretational Bias (MoDAIB).

Methods

In the development phase, participants completing an online survey provided qualitative and quantitative assessments of dental scenarios that could be interpreted in either positive or negative ways. Scenarios producing the greatest difference in visual analog (VAS) scores between individuals with high vs. low dental anxiety as measured by the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) were included in the MoDAIB. In the testing phase, participants completed an online survey including the newly developed MoDAIB and dental anxiety measures.

Results

In the development phase, participants (N = 355; 65.6% female) high in dental anxiety (MDAS ≥ 19) gave significantly higher (i.e., more negative) VAS scores to all the dental scenarios than did those low in dental anxiety (p's &lt; 0.05). In the testing phase, the MoDAIB was significantly and positively correlated with the MDAS (r = 0.68, p &lt; 0.001), meaning that those who were high in dental anxiety selected negative interpretations of ambiguous dental scenarios significantly more often than did individuals low in dental anxiety (p's &lt;0.05). The MoDAIB showed good content validity and test-retest reliability.

Conclusions

Individuals high in dental anxiety interpret ambiguous dental situations more negatively than do less anxious individuals. Understanding individuals' interpretational styles may help dental providers avoid miscommunications. Interventions that train dentally anxious patients to consider more positive interpretations may reduce dental anxiety and should be investigated.

Dental fear in school children and young adults attending public dental health care: prevalence and relationship to gender, oral disease and dental treatment; trends over 40 years

Purpose

To study prevalence of dental fear and the relationship to gender, oral disease and dental treatment between 1973 and 2013 in school children and young adults attending public dental health care.

Methods

Every ten years from 1973 to 2013 random samples of about 100 individuals in each of the age groups 10, 15 and 20 years took part in a repeated cross-sectional study based on clinical parameters and a questionnaire. Dental fear was estimated by the question: “What do you feel at the prospect of an appointment with a dentist?”. 75–99% of the samples answered the question. Agreement to at least one of the alternative answers: ill at ease, frightened and sick defined dental fear. Frightened and/or sick indicated severe dental fear. The prevalence of caries, gingivitis and number of filled tooth surfaces were calculated. Chi-square tests were used to show differences in proportions between groups and linear regression to show trends over time.

Results

Prevalence of dental fear declined in all age groups over time. In the 20-year olds dental fear was found in 29% of the sample and severe dental fear in 12% of girls and 5% of boys in 2013. Individuals with dental fear had higher mean caries prevalence and number of filled tooth surfaces compared with individuals without dental fear.

Conclusions

This 40-year time trend study showed a reduction in dental fear prevalence in school children and young adults offered regular public dental health care based on prevention and a psychological approach. The prevalence of dental fear was still high in 2013 despite a significant decline in caries during the study period. Further improvements in the psychological approach when treating children are thus needed.

The Relationship between Dental Fear and Anxiety, General Anxiety/Fear, Sensory Over-Responsivity, and Oral Health Behaviors and Outcomes: A Conceptual Model

Dental fear and anxiety (DFA) is common across the lifespan and represents a barrier to proper oral health behaviors and outcomes. The aim of this study is to present a conceptual model of the relationships between DFA, general anxiety/fear, sensory over-responsivity (SOR), and/or oral health behaviors and outcomes. Two rounds of literature searches were performed using the PubMed database. Included articles examined DFA, general anxiety/fear, SOR, catastrophizing, and/or oral health behaviors and outcomes in typically developing populations across the lifespan. The relationships between the constructs were recorded and organized into a conceptual model. A total of 188 articles were included. The results provided supporting evidence for relationships between DFA and all other constructs included in the model (general anxiety/fear, SOR, poor oral health, irregular dental attendance, dental behavior management problems [DBMP], and need for treatment with pharmacological methods). Additionally, SOR was associated with general anxiety/fear and DBMP; general anxiety/fear was linked to poor oral health, irregular attendance, and DBMP. This model provides a comprehensive view of the relationships between person factors (e.g., general anxiety/fear, SOR, and DFA) and oral health behaviors and outcomes. This is valuable in order to highlight connections between constructs that may be targeted in the development of new interventions to improve oral health behaviors and outcomes as well as the experience of DFA.

Pain and Avoidance during and after Endodontic Therapy: The Role of Pain Anticipation and Self-Efficacy

Background: Pain anticipation has been identified as a predictor of pain and avoidance with respect to endodontic therapy. Self-efficacy is also key to the development and maintenance of health behaviors and achieve patient adherence to treatment. However, the role of self-efficacy has not been studied yet in endodontic treatment. Methods: This study was conducted on 101 patients who needed root canal therapy. They had to fill a questionnaire before treatment registered pain anticipation and self-efficacy; during and after treatment were registered pain intensity and avoidance. Results: Pain anticipation explained pain during (Beta = 0.51, t = 5.82, p ≤ 0.001, [0.34, 0.69]) and after treatment (Beta = 0.38, t = 4.35, p ≤ 0.001, [0.21, 0.55]). Self-efficacy did not have an influence in pain values. Pain anticipation explained avoidance during (Beta = 0.51, t = 3.60, p ≤ 0.001, [0.23, 0.80]) and after treatment (Beta = 0.62, t = 4.29, p ≤ 0.001, [0.33, 0.91]). Self-efficacy had a significant role in avoidance during treatment (Beta = 0.12, t = 2.19, p ≤ 0.03, [0.01, 0.23]) with a strong moderation relationship between pain anticipation and avoidance when self-efficacy was medium (Beta = 0.44, t = 3.24, p = 0.002, [0.17, 0.72]) or high (Beta = 0.84, t = 3.5, p ≤ 0.001, [0.37, 1.33]). Self-efficacy was not significant respect to avoidance after treatment. Conclusions: Self-efficacy is an important variable in endodontic therapy due to their moderating effect between pain anticipation and avoidance behavior during the procedure. It is necessary to improve the results of root canal therapy and reduce patient’s avoidance in order to take into account this variable.

Translation and Validation of Italian Version of Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C+): A Cross-Sectional Study

Dental anxiety (DA) is defined as unreasonable apprehension toward dental procedures. About 4–20% of the worldwide adult population presents DA, with peaks of 30% in the younger population. Managing patients with dental anxiety and fear with a reliable and valid instrument is necessary to understand the multidimensional dimensions of dental fear. This work aimed to validate the Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C+) into Italian. Two hundred and eighty dental students attending an Italian university were enrolled. The IDAF-4C+ was translated by experts and a native English translator, blinded to the original version. The Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) was used to assess the validity of IDAF-4C+. Spearman correlation coefficients and Exploratory Factorial Analysis (EFA) were used. Reliability was evaluated by Cronbach’s alpha. The reliability of the Italian version of IDAF-4C+ was good (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.88). Correlation between IDAF-4C+ and MDAS ranged between 0.42 to 0.68. From EFA, one factor explained 58.76% of the common variance. Women showed a higher level of dental fear. The Italian IDAF-4C+ is a valid and reliable tool to assess DA in any clinical context. This instrument allows for a proper understanding and management of DA, and therefore a better patient oral health-related quality of life and compliance with the dentist’s instructions.

Self-reported dental anxiety and injection phobia among individuals with tattoos and piercings

Injection phobia and dental anxiety can, in severe cases, lead to avoidance of necessary treatment. The aim of this pilot study was to investigate self-reported injection phobia and dental anxiety among individuals with tattoos and/or piercings. The Injection Phobia Scale-Anxiety (IPSA) short form and the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) questionnaires were applied. Both the total IPSA and MDAS scores were significantly higher for individuals with tattoos in comparison with a control group (P < 0.001), suggesting a need for anxiety-reducing measures and facilitated treatment for this group of patients.

Oral health and oral health behavior in young adults with caries disease

Objective

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze oral health, oral health behaviors, and oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) in relation to the level of caries disease among caries-active young adults.

Material and methods

This study presents data from a sample of young adults (n = 135) with active caries disease who were enrolled in a clinical, randomized controlled trial. The independent variables of sociodemographics, oral health (gingivitis, plaque), oral health behaviors (such as toothbrushing, dental attendance, sugar-containing sweets and drinks), dental anxiety, self-rated oral health, and OHRQoL were collected. Multinomial logistic regression was used to simultaneously evaluate the associations between the independent variables and caries severity.

Results

Multinominal logistic regression showed that poor OHRQoL and gingivitis were associated with caries severity in a gradient fashion in accordance with caries disease activity. Also, irregular dental care and frequent consumption of sugary soda were significantly associated with very high caries severity.

Conclusions

The risk factors related to caries severity among young adults were poor OHRQoL, gingivitis, consumption of sugary soda and irregular dental care attendance, indicating the need for a combination of different interventions specifically health behavior change. Furthermore, these findings may contribute to identifying high caries-risk individuals.

Attitudes to dental visits in a child population attending public dental health care in Jönköping, Sweden-trends over 40 years

PURPOSE

To study attitudes to dental visits in a child population attending public dental health care between 1973 and 2013.

METHODS

Random samples of individuals aged 3, 5, 10, 15 and 20 years took part in cross-sectional studies based on clinical parameters and a questionnaire, all repeated every 10 years using the same study design. One question related to dental attitude; "What do you feel at the prospect of an appointment with a dentist?". The affirmative answers were full of expectation, unaffected, ill at ease, frightened and sick, representing positive, neutral and negative attitudes. During the same 40-year period, a dental health care system based on prevention and regular dental appointments was reinforced.

RESULTS

In preschool children, the most pronounced change was an increase in the number of children reporting full of expectation during the study period. In 10-, 15- and 20-year-olds, there was an increase in unaffected and a decrease in ill at ease over time. A reduction in frightened was only seen in the 20-year-olds.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite a simultaneous dramatic decline in caries and a reduced need for operative dental treatment, the dental attitudes were fairly constant during the 40-year period. The moderate shifts to more positive or neutral dental attitudes were merely seen during the first 10 or 20 years. After this, the changes in answers were limited. This leads to the assumption that factors other than dental treatment experiences have an impact on dental attitudes in children.

What sensitivities matter in dental anxiety? Investigating sensitivity to anxiety, pain, and disgust

Dental anxiety affects many people worldwide and interferes with oral health. Beyond emotional distress, avoidance of dental care visits can lead to serious dental and health consequences. Although emerging research implicates anxiety, pain, and disgust sensitivities in the etiology and maintenance of dental anxiety, no studies to date have concurrently investigated the unique contribution of these vulnerabilities in dental anxiety. As a step toward elucidating salient mechanisms of dental anxiety, the present study investigated the aggregate contribution of anxiety, pain, and disgust sensitivities in dental anxiety, after controlling for relevant covariates. In this study, participants (N = 717; 71.3% female) included an unselected sample of undergraduate students who completed a battery of online questionnaires. Consistent with community rates, 12% of this sample reported high levels of dental anxiety. The hierarchical regression model revealed anxiety and disgust sensitivities were positively associated with dental anxiety symptoms when adjusting for other model variables. Results highlight the roles of anxiety and disgust sensitivities in dental anxiety and indicate the potential benefit of targeting these emotional sensitivities through routine screenings and treatments for dentally anxious patients.

Dental anxiety in 18-year-old Norwegians in 1996 and 2016

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of dental anxiety, and to explore factors that may increase the risk of reporting dental anxiety among 18-year-old Norwegians in 2016. A further objective was to report changes in dental anxiety since 1996.Material and methods: An anonymous survey from a strategic sample of upper secondary students (n = 351) in 2016 with high response rate (93%) was compared with the results of an investigation of a similar population conducted in 1996.Results: The prevalence of dental anxiety and dental distrust was reduced from 1996 to 2016. Dental Fear Survey (DFS) from 19 to 8% (p < .001), and Dental Belief Survey (DBS) from 15 to 6% (p < .001). Geer Fear Scale (GFS) which measure phobic anxiety did not show a similar reduction (17 versus 15%, p = .37). Phobic anxiety, avoidance behaviour, self-reported poor oral health and previous experiences of pain were all associated with dental anxiety.Conclusion: The prevalence of dental anxiety was reduced from 1996 to 2016, but 8% still report dental anxiety. Proper pain management and use of behavioural management techniques still needs to be highlighted to prevent development of dental anxiety, avoidance behaviour and poor oral health.

Children's Perceptions of Dentist's Attire and Environment: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Aim

To assess the children's perceptions of the dentist's attire and environment. The protocol is available in the PROSPERO database.

Search strategies

Systematic searches in the databases were performed in Cochrane, Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences, PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science from their inception to December 12, 2019, Google Scholar, Open Grey, and ProQuest Dissertations.

Selection criteria

Criteria consisted of descriptive studies regarding the above matter while two authors assessed the information. The risk of bias was also performed.

Results

Databases showed 1,544 papers and a two-phase assessment selected 21 studies in narrative and 9 in the quantitative synthesis. A meta-analysis demonstrated no difference between white coat and child-friendly attire (OR = 0.63; 95% CI 0.16-2.49; n = 3,706) and a decorated vs plain dental clinic was the preference of the children's majority (OR = 8.75; 95% CI 1.21-63.37; n = 150).

Conclusion

It can be concluded that there is no difference in the children's perception, white coat vs child-friendly attire; however, children prefer a decorated dental clinic.

How to cite this article

Oliveira LB, Massignan C, De Carvalho RM, et al. Children's Perceptions of Dentist's Attire and Environment: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2020;13(6):700-716.

Being considerate every step of the way: a qualitative study analysing trauma-sensitive dental treatment for childhood sexual abuse survivors

This qualitative study aimed to obtain a deeper understanding of what makes adult dentistry possible for child sexual abuse survivors. Sixteen adult informants were recruited from four Centres against Sexual Abuse and interviewed. Qualitative analysis of the transcribed interviews was conducted consecutively until thematic saturation was reached at 16 informants. A conceptual framework was generated, and informants' experiences of what makes dental treatment achievable were summed as the dentist working in a trauma-sensitive way, captured by the core category: Being considerate every step of the way. The underlying categories are: (i) offering a good start; (ii) being competent; (iii) being aware of the influence of staff behaviour; (iv) building a safe relationship; (v) arranging a secure treatment situation; and (vi) exploring individual triggers. The findings revealed that dental staff should have adequate competence to build secure relationships and explore individual triggers in dental treatment situations when treating child sexual abuse survivors. Dentists should have a trauma-sensitive approach to all patients. When treating child sexual abuse survivors, dentists should demonstrate utmost consideration every step of the way, building long-term solid relationships, and discussing and testing coping strategies individually adapted to the specific needs of the child sexual abuse survivors, in a safe environment.