Do Dental Anxiety Questionnaires Raise Anxiety in Dentally Anxious Adult Patients? A Two-Wave Panel Study
Authors: Humphris, Gerry M.1; Hull, P.2
Source: Primary Dental Care, Volume 14, Number 1, January 2007 , pp. 7-11(5)
Publisher: Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK)
Abstract:
Objective: To test whether or not dentally anxious patients attending the dentist for an appointment become more anxious when completing a dental anxiety questionnaire.Basic research design: Patients were initially screened to include only those who were dentally anxious. A pre- and post-test was planned with the completion of the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) questionnaire as the intervention.Clinical setting: Two dental access centres in the North West of England.Participants: Initially, 583 patients were screened. Of these, 182 (31%) were found to be dentally anxious and were recruited into the study.Main outcome measures: State-Trait Anxiety Inventory Scale Short Form.Results: State anxiety did not change with the completion of the MDAS questionnaire in either designated dental phobics (MDAS ≥19) or those classified as non-phobics (MDAS <19).Conclusions: The MDAS can be used to assess dental anxiety without raising anxiety in patients with or without self-reported dental phobia.Document Type: Research article
DOI: 10.1308/135576107779398165
Affiliations: 1: The Bute Medical School, University of St Andrews, Fife, UK 2: Pennine Care NHS Trust, Stalybridge, Cheshire, UK
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