Evaluation of the risk factors of dental anxiety in children

INTRODUCTION: Dental anxiety is described as state anxiety as it occurs due to the dental treatment procedure. The present study aimed to evaluate the etiological factors of dental anxiety in children aged 7-8 and 11-12 years old.
METHODS: A total of 370 children of both genders were enrolled in the study. The socioeconomic status, education levels and family income of the parents, oral hygiene habits, and caries status of the children were recorded on a structured questionnaire. The dental anxiety of both children and their mothers were evaluated by the administration of a questionnaire based on Corah’s Dental Anxiety Scale(DAS). The Children’s Fear Survey Schedule-Dental Subscale(CFSS-DS) was also used to assess the dental anxiety levels of the children. Data were analyzed using SPSS 19.0 software program. Descriptive statistics were used for sociodemographic data. Parametric and non-parametric tests were used for comparing means/medians, whereas chi-square tests were used for comparing proportions. Student t-test and analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Bonferroni correction were employed to compare the anxiety scale results. All significance levels were set at 0.05.
RESULTS: A negative correlation was found between the age groups and dental anxiety levels in children(p=0.02). The difference between gender and dental anxiety was statistically significant(p=0.01). Boys were found more anxious than girls. The differences between the dental anxiety and the education level of the mothers, and the family income of the parents were not statistically significant(p>0.05). It was detected that the maternal dental anxiety level strongly affected the anxiety level of the children in a group of 7-8 years (p=0.01), while no significant difference was found in a group of 11-12 years(p>0.05). A positive correlation was found between the dental caries scores of the children and dental anxiety level(p=0.01).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Dental anxiety is multifactorial, and is far more complex than can be explained by a single contributing factor.