The Reliability and Validity of the Japanese Version of the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale among Dental Outpatients

Abstract

Introduction. A careful assessment of dental anxiety is necessary for its management. The Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) is one of the most commonly used questionnaires to measure dental anxiety in the world. The reliability and validity of the Japanese version of MDAS have been demonstrated using undergraduates and a few patients with dental anxiety. The aim of the present study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Japanese version of the MDAS using a wide range of age samples in dental clinics. Methods. A total of 275 outpatients (145 men and 130 women; 21–87 years) from two dental clinics participated in the present study. Dental anxiety was assessed using the Japanese version of the MDAS and the Dental Fear Survey (DFS). The psychometric evaluation included exploratory factor analysis, and Cronbach’s α was used to evaluate for internal consistency. Criterion validity was assessed by correlating the MDAS and DFS scores using Spearman’s correlation coefficient. validity was evaluated by examining related factors’ differences in the MDAS score (e.g., sex and negative dental experiences). Results. Six patients (2.2%) reported high levels of dental anxiety (MDAS score ≥ 19). The internal consistency of the MDAS score was high (Cronbach’s α = 0.88). Dental anxiety was significantly higher among women (P=0.007), in patients with previous negative dental experiences (P<0.001), and among those with lower frequencies of dental visits (P<0.001). The MDAS score was significant and related to age (r = 0.48) and the DFS score (r = 0.87). Factor analysis revealed all items measured only one construct. Conclusions. The Japanese version of the MDAS score was found to be a reliable and valid measure of dental anxiety among dental outpatients. It could be useful for the Japanese dental practitioner to measure dental anxiety in a clinical setting.

Assessment of dental anxiety and dental phobia among adults in Lebanon

“…Furthermore, past traumatic dental experiences during childhood and adolescence seem to play an important factor in increasing dental anxiety and phobia. This result is consistent with previous studies [4,16,21,35]. In fact, since dental memory is extremely powerful, the upcoming painless dental experience cannot overcome previous bad dental experiences [5].…”

“…The levels of dental anxiety and phobia were higher among females compared to males. This corroborates with the results of previous studies [4,5,16,21,35,39,40]. The perceived gender difference in anxiety and phobia could be attributed to a combination of emotional and social factors.…”

“…This comes in consistency with the study of Humphris in 1995 (Cronbach's alpha: 0.84 to 0.90) [9]. Moreover, the cross-culturally adapted studies of the MDAS such as the Romanian (0.90) [32], Turkish (0.91) [33], Greek (0.90) [34], United Kingdom (0.917) [13], Italian (0.92) [21], and Japanese versions (0.88) [35] reported similar results. The MDAS-A revealed strong reproducibility over time with an ICC of 0.93.…”

Dental Fear and Patient Preference for Emergency Dental Treatment Among Adults in COVID-19 Quarantine Centers in Dammam, Saudi Arabia

“… 3 On the other hand, mean DFS scores were lower in adult patients in Greek (34.00 ±17.07) 18 and Japan (38.54 ± 13.30). 26 Moreover, lower estimates of DFS (34.8 ± 13.1) were also reported in a study of undergraduate students in Brazil. 27 These differences in dental fear in different studies can be attributed to variations in study populations and study methodologies.…”

Psychometric Properties of the Japanese Version of the Single Dental Anxiety Question: A Cross-sectional Online Survey

“…A cutoff score of ≥19 was used to identify individuals with high levels of dental anxiety [19]. The Japanese version of MDAS was found to have high reliability and validity [13,20].…”