Assessment of dental anxiety and dental phobia among adults in Lebanon

Abstract

Background Dental anxiety continues to be a widespread problem affecting adult populations. The primary aim of our study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Lebanese Arabic version of the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS-A) and to identify the optimal cut-off for assessing dental anxiety and dental phobia among adults in Lebanon. In addition, we sought to assess dental anxiety and phobia as well as their correlates among Lebanese adult patients. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out on a sample of 451 dental adult patients aged between 18 and 65 years old. Information about demographic characteristics, previous bad dental experience, trauma’s experience period, perception of a periodontal problem, sensation of nausea during dental treatment, the MDAS-A scale, and the Visual Analogue Scale for anxiety (VAS-A) were collected. Results MDAS-A exhibited evidence of adequate psychometric properties. The optimal cut-off was 12 for dental anxiety and 14 for dental phobia. Out of the total sample, 31.5% suffered from dental anxiety while 22.4% had a dental phobia. Multivariable analysis showed that the odds of dental anxiety and phobia were higher among females compared to males. Also, patients suffering from periodontal problem perceptions, bad dental experiences during childhood and adolescence, and the sensation of nausea during dental treatment were at a higher risk of developing dental anxiety and phobia compared to their counterparts. However, a higher level of education was found to be a protective factor against dental phobia among Lebanese adult patients. Conclusion The MDAS-A scale is a suitable tool for the routine assessment of dental anxiety and phobia among Lebanese adult patients. Identifying patients with dental anxiety at the earliest opportunity is of utmost importance for delivering successful dental care.

Dental Anxiety and Influencing Factors in Adults

“…Females were more prone to suffering from dental anxiety and dental phobia than their male counterparts, with 75% of female respondents reporting being dentally anxious. This significant association was echoed in many other kinds of research [ 12 , 13 , 21 , 27 , 28 ]. Deogade et al and Waseem et al attributed it to women’s readiness to express their anxiety more often than their male counterparts who may not be as open about their fears because of social stigmas [ 3 , 21 ].…”

“…Dental anxiety and phobia are seen in a vast number of people and understanding those who suffer from these phenomena can only help dentists manage their patients more effectively [ 2 , 12 , 13 ]. Dentists find working with a dentally anxious patient stressful and it triggers their anxiety, which can result in compromised treatment for the patient.…”

“…It is usually seen that people with higher education levels experience less dental anxiety because their understanding of the treatment is higher compared to someone who has less education [ 3 , 13 , 22 , 24 ]. On the flipside, ignorance is bliss, and sometimes individuals who had less awareness regarding dental treatment modalities were less inclined to be anxious about the treatment itself [ 22 ].…”

Estimating the Need for Sedation in Patients with Dental Anxiety and Medical Complexities Reporting to Tertiary Care Dental Hospital Using the IOSN Tool

“…The anxiety component of the IOSN Tool (Indicator of Sedation Need Tool) was calculated using Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) as it is deemed as a very relevant and brief tool [ 8 ].…”

Experience of using a smartphone WeChat applet for dental anxiety assessment and preoperative evaluation: A nationwide multicenter study

“…Despite the recent innovations and technological advances in modern dentistry, dental anxiety continues to be widespread ( 1 , 2 ). It occurs globally and is considered a public health problem ( 3 ).…”