IADR Abstract Archives
Dental Anxiety Is Significant In A Sri Lankan Population
Objectives: Dental anxiety has always been one of the most common psychological conditions in the provision of dental care: it is a phenomenon that has from time immemorial contributed to the stereotyping of dentists as “painful drillers and fillers of teeth”. Many studies have been conducted around the world to explore the prevalence, causes, and consequences of dental anxiety, but there are no data from Sri Lanka. Our aim was to describe its prevalence in a Sri Lankan population and its association with the treatment-seeking behaviours, oral health status and oral health impact of the subjects.
Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted in Kalutara District among 20-44 year old adults. Seven hundred subjects were selected by multistage, stratified, probability-proportionate-to-size sampling and data were gathered by self-administered questionnaire, including Sinhalese/Tamil version of the Dental Fear Survey (DFS), the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) and Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14).Oral health and disease were recorded using World Health Organization recommended criteria for oral health surveys.
Results: Approximately 56% of the total sample (n=700) were female; 86% were rural. Prevalence of dental anxiety was 39% and 32% for MDAS and DFS respectively. Dental anxiety was significantly associated (p< 0.05) with younger age, female gender and lower educational level. No significant difference was found between dental anxiety and Urban/Rural sectors or income level. Eighty percent of the sample had experienced some symptoms of an oral/dental disease and the majority sought the care of a dental surgeon. Invasive types of treatment (65%) were commonest and these were associated significantly (p< 0.05) with dental anxiety. Dentally anxious subjects had significantly more decayed teeth, fewer filled teeth and low Oral Health Related Quality of life scores.
Conclusions: This study identified dental anxiety as a concern in Sri Lanka. Further research, planning and implementation of programs to overcome the associated burden are recommended for both public and private sectors.
Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted in Kalutara District among 20-44 year old adults. Seven hundred subjects were selected by multistage, stratified, probability-proportionate-to-size sampling and data were gathered by self-administered questionnaire, including Sinhalese/Tamil version of the Dental Fear Survey (DFS), the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) and Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14).Oral health and disease were recorded using World Health Organization recommended criteria for oral health surveys.
Results: Approximately 56% of the total sample (n=700) were female; 86% were rural. Prevalence of dental anxiety was 39% and 32% for MDAS and DFS respectively. Dental anxiety was significantly associated (p< 0.05) with younger age, female gender and lower educational level. No significant difference was found between dental anxiety and Urban/Rural sectors or income level. Eighty percent of the sample had experienced some symptoms of an oral/dental disease and the majority sought the care of a dental surgeon. Invasive types of treatment (65%) were commonest and these were associated significantly (p< 0.05) with dental anxiety. Dentally anxious subjects had significantly more decayed teeth, fewer filled teeth and low Oral Health Related Quality of life scores.
Conclusions: This study identified dental anxiety as a concern in Sri Lanka. Further research, planning and implementation of programs to overcome the associated burden are recommended for both public and private sectors.