Self-Assessed Dental Status, DMF and Dental Anxiety

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the relation between self-assessed dental status, DMF index as observed in a dental screening and dental anxiety. Methods: The study was conducted among Israeli young adults (18-21 years old), from various communities around the country, who were screened for dental status. An anonymous questionnaire was used to collect the data. The questionnaire included self-assessment of dental status as well as the Dental Anxiety Scale (DAS). Dental caries status was evaluated using the World Health Organization (WHO) caries diagnostic criteria for decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT). Results: A total of 393 young adults were examined. More than 10% reported their last visit to the dental clinic was more than 3 years ago. One third of the participants reported on brushing their teeth once a day or less. 10.69% assessed their dental status as "Bad" whereas 46.31% assessed their status as "Fair". Of all participants 25.26% assessed their dental treatment needs as high. The average DAS score was 7.14, while a DAS score of 13 or higher that indicates high dental anxiety was observed in only 4% of the subjects. The average DMF score was 6.2 (D=2.06, F=3.9). There was a correlation between self reported tooth status, patients assessment of their dental treatment needs and DMF score (p<0.0001). Anxious patients tend to assessed their dental treatment needs as higher (p=0.05). Conclusions: Dental clinicians should pay more attention on educating patients regarding the importance of dental behavior, follow-up and periodic check-ups. Patients with high levels of dental disease tend to be familiar with their status and thus should be encouraged and adequately managed in order to improve their status.