Dental Anxiety Flashcards
Definition of dental fear
Normal emotional reaction to one or more specific threatening stimuli in the dental environment
Definition of dental anxiety
Sense of apprehension that something dreadful is going to happen in relation to dental treatment, coupled with a sense of losing control
Definition of dental phobia
Severe type of dental anxiety manifested as a marked and persistent anxiety in relation to clearly discernible situations/objects or to the dental situation in general
Diagnosis of dental phobia (2)
Complete avoidance of necessary treatment or endurance of treatment with dread (in specialist treatment situations)
Causes of dental anxiety (3)
Negative experiences (personal/family and friends), media representation of dentistry, expectation of pain/discomfort
Characteristics of dental anxiety (6)
High neuroticism and trail anxiety, pessimism, negative expectation, somatisation, low pain threshold, co-morbid anxiety/depressive disorders
Paediatric dental anxiety can be due to (3)
Conditioning (objective pathology and subjective experiences), modelling (mothers behaviour), information (absorbing mothers attitude)
Treatment of mild dental anxiety (3)
Coping strategies (distraction/relaxation), sedative drugs (benzodiazepines/sedation), acknowledge anxiety –> build relationship –> provide realistic information and control (start/stop signals and questions) –> provide predictability
Behaviour management involves
Reducing fear and anxiety