Prevalence of Dental Anxiety Among Students in A Medical Institute in India

Anxiety is a common characteristic of many patients in a dental practice setting. It is estimated that in western populations, approximately 10% to 40% undergo dental anxiety while rates are higher in non-western populations. Dental anxiety is an important challenge for many patients and clinicians and is most prime barriers to optimum and high-quality dental care. Some factors that could lead to dental anxiety include painful extractions, injections, age, gender and past dental experiences. Research have shown that extreme cases of dental anxiety can lead to the avoidance of dental visits, which then in turn results in poor oral health, and patients only seek for help when the pain becomes unbearable. This research will provide dentists a better understanding on the awareness of dental anxiety among patients and to also help them plan suitable treatments (Figure1). The aim of this study was to investigate the differences and assessment of the dental anxiety levels between genders and among medical undergraduate, postgraduate and nursing students of AIIMS, Rishikesh, India. This was a cross-sectional study using a questionnaire where an estimate of up to 500 students were asked to answer some questions upon receiving their written consents. The questionnaire included their personal demographics data and the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) questions.  The degree of anxiety was compared in relation to different factors. Data collected was analyzed using chi-square test and one-way ANOVA.