Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Sep 30;9(9):4530-4535.
doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_607_20. eCollection 2020 Sep.

Evaluating factors associated with fear and anxiety to dental treatment-A systematic review

Affiliations
Review

Evaluating factors associated with fear and anxiety to dental treatment-A systematic review

Muhannad H Murad et al. J Family Med Prim Care. .

Abstract

Introduction: Dental anxiety refers to a set of complex psychological issues bearing a significant impact in individual's lives reflecting in the form of dental visit avoidance, poor dental health status and decreases oral health related quality of life. Hence, it is imperative to consider those factors associated with dental anxiety so as to treat and promote better oral health. The review aimed to assess various factors associated with dental fear and anxiety.

Materials and methods: Literature search was done from Pubmed and Google scholar search engines to identify publications which explored factors associated with dental fear and anxiety.

Results: Research evidence pointed a significant relationship of age, gender, maternal anxiety, previous dental experience, and number of siblings with dental fear and anxiety (DFA).

Conclusion: Findings of the review clearly suggest that a better understanding of factors causing dental anxiety and phobia will help preventing dental avoidance and providing better care.

Keywords: Age; dental anxiety; dental fear; gender; maternal anxiety.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow diagram representing data extraction for review

References

    1. Pohjola V, Lahti S, Vehkalahti MM, Tolvanen M, Hausen H. Association between dental fear and dental attendance among adults in Finland. Acta Odontol Scand. 2007;65:224–30. - PubMed
    1. Gatchell RJ, Ingersoll BD, Bowman L, Robertson MC, Walker C. The prevalence of dental fear and avoidance: A recent survey study. J Am Dent Assoc. 1983;107:609–10. - PubMed
    1. Agras S, Sylvester D, Oliveau D. The epidemiology of common fears and phobia. Compr Psychiatry. 1969;10:151–6. - PubMed
    1. Berggren U, Hakeberg M, Carlsson SG. No differences could be demonstrated between relaxation therapy and cognitive therapy for dental fear. J Evid Based Dent Pract. 2001;1:117–8.
    1. Klingberg G, Brogerg A. Dental fear/anxiety and dental behaviour management problems in children and adolescents: A review of prevalence and concomitant psychological factors. Int J Paediatr Dent. 2007;17:391–406. - PubMed