ABSTRACT
Aims: The aim was to assess the level of dental anxiety in adult patients in two major cities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and identify the etiological factors linked to this condition
Settings and Designs: A cross-sectional study using a questionnaire
Materials and Methods: A self-administered questionnaire based on the modified dental anxiety scale was distributed to dental patients who attended the dental clinics of the University of Dammam and King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, respectively. The questionnaire included information about socio-demographic factors and other questions indicative of dental anxiety
Results: A total of 132 forms was received from subjects in Dammam and 144 forms from Jeddah. The level of dental anxiety in patients was relatively higher [27.5%] than other studies. In this study, patients in Jeddah showed higher levels of dental anxiety than those in Dammam [31.9% vs. 22.7%]. As expected, females demonstrated a higher level of anxiety than males [19.2% vs. 8.3%]. Most of the participants who had severe dental anxiety thought a bad experience at the dentist was the main cause of their anxiety
Conclusions: Dental anxiety was perceived as a problem in the sample examined. This was clearly seen irrespective of age, gender, social status, and/or place of residence. Patients' fear of dental treatment continues to pose a great threat to the dental profession. Dental professionals are encouraged to further assess the extent of this problem in order to find methods and techniques to help patients overcome it
ABSTRACT
Aims: The aim of this study was to determine the validity of using oral surgery simulation models as a tool to assess the psychomotor skills of dental students
Materials and Methods: All students in the 4th year of a 6 years dental program were enrolled in the study. 23 dental students were asked to display their competency in the injection of local anesthesia and dental extraction in two summative testing environments namely; in the simulation and in the outpatient clinic. A panel of four experts assessed the students' performance during the injection of local anesthesia and tooth extraction on patients and simulation using a pre-validated checklist. Students' scores were compared in both settings
Results: The results showed no significant correlation between the scores on patients and simulation in the two settings [P = 0.759]
Conclusions: The study revealed that the real patient remains the gold standard in summative assessment of dental students' psychomotor skills
ABSTRACT
Objectives: The study aimed to identify the dental procedures that elicit the highest level of anxiety by various dental procedures and to determine the correlation of anxiety with students' gender and varying perceptions of anxiety across years of dental education
Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Sardar Begum Dental College, Peshawar, Pakistan during June 2014. The Corah's Dental Anxiety Scale [DAS] was distributed to all students. This instrument had 26 items examining the anxiety levels experienced for different dental procedures. Options ranging from 1 to 4 were provided for every item, where 1 represented low anxiety and 4 represented the highest anxiety
Results: The overall response rate was 67.3% [n = 101; 64 females and 37 males]. Among the top five dental procedures eliciting the highest anxiety levels, females were found to be more anxious than males for all procedures [fear of injection/needle, root canal treatment, extraction, and application of cold air] except the need for further treatment. Pre-clinical students [1[st] and 2[nd] year] were found to be more anxious than clinical students [3[rd] and 4[th] year]. Significant differences [p < 0.05] were found for three procedures: rubber dam placement, inability to stop dentist, and impression taking. Clinical students reported high anxiety for the latter, and pre-clinical students reported higher anxiety for the former two procedures
Conclusions: Higher anxiety levels were reported by females and pre-clinical students than their respective counterparts. Educational sessions and graded exposure therapy at an initial stage of dental educational training may decrease the anxiety associated with dental procedures
Subject(s)
Humans , Gender Identity , Cross-Sectional Studies , Fear , Education, Dental , Students, DentalABSTRACT
Laboratory observations revealed that both C. pipiens and C. quinquefasciatus could harbour the parasitic Hepatozoon, while only Cx. pipiens succeeded to induce infection to the recipient lizard Uromastyx microlepis. A significant reduction in egg production together with a significant increase in the pre-oviposition period of C. pipiens was recorded. Incubation period and percentage of egg hatching showed no significant changes. Infection had no effect on the reproductive fitness of C. quinquefasciatus. Haematin excretion was normally distributed for all both species. No size difference was recorded between infected and uninfected ones. Infection did not affect longevity