Evaluation of children dental anxiety during dental treatment

Abstract

Introduction: For many years, anxiety and fear of dental treatment in children have been recognized as a source of problems in patient management for pediatric dentists. Good oral health depends on childhood dental treatment. There are many adult patients that delaying, even declining or avoiding dental treatment because of their childhood anxiety and fear to receive dental treatment. By assessing dental anxiety, it helps to understand child’s behavior during dental attendance and improve treatment plan. Aim: This study was to estimate the prevalence of dental anxiety among children with primary dentition. Materials and Methods: The study population was 40 subject who were selected from 4-6 years old children with primary dentition using the Children’s Fear Survey Schedule-Dental Subscale (CFSS-DS). Results: Of all the children studied, 7.5% had up to 3 decayed teeth in the mouth, 50% had 3-5 decayed teeth, and 37.5% had more than 5 decayed teeth. The prevalence of dental anxiety was 72.5%. A significant association between dental caries and the child’s dental anxiety was found: the higher the anxiety the many teeth were decayed (p≤0.001). Conclusion: The results have shown 72.5% of the children with primary dentition to be highly fearful. By providing extra attention for these children, the development of high dental anxiety may be prevented.