Dental anxiety is one of the most common conditions present amongst the masses globally. It is this fear that makes individuals avoid seeking dental treatment which results in a deteriorated oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL). Discrepancies exist in the prevalence of dental anxiety based on gender, education levels, level of deprivation of a society and its socioeconomic status. In this study, a sample size of 522 respondents was collected. Kuppuswamy’s socioeconomic status scale and modified dental anxiety scales were used to collect the necessary data. These data were analyzed by cross tabbing and chi-square test of significance was applied to assess the association between dental anxiety and other factors. Female gender was significantly associated with dental anxiety with p-value = 0.03. Higher education levels and dental anxiety also displayed significant associations with each other, with a p-value of 0.048. Seventy-six percent of the individuals of lower socioeconomic status were prone to be more dentally anxious. Dental anxiety was more significant in individuals with higher levels of education in our study. Respondents who were part of a lower socioeconomic class were also more prone to being anxious while receiving dental treatment. Knowing the factors that cause dental anxiety can help dentists effectively manage and treat their patients.

Objectives: This study aims to identify the common factors that contribute towards uncertainty in decision making in undergraduate medical students and highlights the strategies that can be used to reduce this uncertainty. Study Design: Qualitative Study. Setting: Riphah International University, Avicenna Medical and Dental College, Lahore. Period: July 2020 to September 2020. Material & Methods: Four focus groups were conducted with a total of 26 participants (2 with faculty members, 2 with final year students). Data was transcribed and analyzed using ATLAS. ti software. Thematic analysis was done. Results: Two main themes were identified: faculty related and student related reasons and strategies. The most common reason for uncertainty in decision making was a lack of knowledge while the most common strategy to reduce this uncertainty was increased patient exposure and enhancing medical knowledge. Conclusion: Uncertainty is ingrained in medical education and is commonly experienced by medical students during their interaction with patients. It is essential to identify the reasons that contribute to this uncertainty in decision making and highlight strategies that reduce it in order to foster competent and confident physicians.