Assessment of the Fear and Anxiety of Children Referred to the Katip Celebi University Department of Pediatric Dentistry Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

INTRODUCTION: This study aimed to compare the dental fear and anxiety of dental patients aged 6-12 years before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: The first phase of the study was conducted on Group 1 (n=350) before the pandemic and the second phase was conducted on Group 2 (n=350) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dental anxiety and fear were assessed using 4 scales: the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS), the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (MCDAS), the Dental Subscale of the Children’s Fear Survey Schedule Dental (CFSS-DS), the Dental Fear Scale (DFS). In the second phase, participants also filled out a questionnaire related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were analyzed using SPSS Statistics 25 (IBM, Armonk, New York).
RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the two groups based on socio-demographic variables (p>0.05). Scores during the pandemic decreased significantly for the MDAS, CFFS-DS and DFS (p=0.002, p=0.002, p=0.010, respectively). In Group 2, 2% of them reported that their anxiety increased because of the change in the dentists’ personal protective equipment and 30.9% reported they were anxious about COVID-19 transmission.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: In this study, dental fear and anxiety decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Personal protective equipment was not effective on dental fear and anxiety.