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. 2017 Sep;37(5):212-222.
doi: 10.1111/scd.12245. Epub 2017 Oct 17.

Dental fear among transgender individuals - a cross-sectional survey

Masahiro Heima  1 , Lisa J Heaton  2 , Henry H Ng  3 , Elisabeth C Roccoforte  4
Affiliations

Dental fear among transgender individuals - a cross-sectional survey

Masahiro Heima et al. Spec Care Dentist. 2017 Sep.

Abstract

Aims: The aims of this study were to: (1) evaluate the level of dental fear among transgender individuals and (2) investigate specific predictors of dental fear in individuals who identify as transgender.

Method and results: An anonymous survey among transgender adults was conducted using both a web-based and paper survey. The survey included the Dental Fear Survey (DFS), history of hormonal interventions, perceived gender roles, and demographic information. The bivariate analyses did not show a significant difference in DFS between sex assigned at birth (p = 0.628) or among gender identities (p = 0.109). A regression model analysis for the level of DFS by using participants' demographic information as independent variables indicated the fear and experience of discrimination/maltreatment were significant predictors of dental fear; standardized beta coefficients (p-value) were 0.35 (p = 0.017) and 0.28 (p = 0.041), respectively.

Conclusion: The fear and experiences of discrimination/maltreatment were significantly positively associated with their level of dental fear.

Keywords: dental anxiety; surveys and questionnaires; transgender persons.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest

All authors declare no conflicts of interest with respect to the authorship and publication of this article.

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