Anxiety Assessment Intervention in Dental Patients

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Dental anxiety is a significant barrier to the acceptance of regular dental care, and has many negative consequences. A study by Dailey et al. (2002) found that providing the dentist with information of the high level of a patient's dental anxiety prior to treatment using the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS, Humphris et al., 1995), lead to a significant reduction in state anxiety from pre- to post- dental consultation compared to a control group. The current study aimed to replicate the study by Dailey et al. (2002), and to further explore whether the reduction in state anxiety associated with the MDAS could be explained by a change in dentist behaviour on receiving it, or a change in patient expectancy about the treatment session, or both. The design was a randomised control trial involving three groups, which aimed to manipulate possible changes in dentist behaviour and patient expectancy. In Group 1, the MDAS was left at reception, as expected by the patient. In Group 2, the dentist received the MDAS, although the patient did not expect this. In Group 3 the dentist received the MDAS and the patient did expect this. The sample (N=182) was taken from two dental access centres, and included participants obtaining a score of 19 or above, or 5 on any one item of the MDAS. Pre- and post-dental consultation measures of state anxiety were taken using the six-item short-form of the state scale of the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S, Marteau & Bekker, 1992).

Detailed Description
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The aim of the current study was to compare the degree of anxiety reduction in dentally anxious patients attending a Dental Access Center where the dentist did or did not receive the patients' assessment of dental anxiety. METHODS Design of study A three group pre-and post-test design was adopted, a control group (Group1: patient completed the MDAS (Modified Dental Anxiety Scale) questionnaire and handed it to the receptionist) and the experimental group where the patient handed the MDAS to the dentist (Group 3). An additional group was included (Group 2). Patients completed the MDAS and handed it to the receptionist whereupon it was given to the dentist contrary to patient expectation. The dental staff were kept blind to the actual design of the study. The Local Research and Ethics Committee approved the study. Test the hypothesis that patients sharing assessment information about their dental anxiety to members of the dental team has beneficial effects on their state anxiety. Randomisation A block randomisation schedule was computer generated by University of Manchester statistician (BT). Pre-sealed opaque envelopes that contained questionnaires specific to the three groups were prepared by a colleague to minimise selection bias. All materials were pre-coded with the participant number. Sample Dental Access Centers provide: general dental services to those who are not registered with a NHS dentist, NHS patient charges and receipt of easily available treatment and advice (appointment not always necessary). The study was conducted at two Greater Manchester Dental Access Centers. These sites offered treatment to emergency dental patients who were more likely to become dentally anxious than regular attenders (Maggirias and Locker, 2002) . Participants were volunteers recruited, from October 2003 to April 2004.

Official Title
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An Investigation Into Patients' State Anxiety Reduction Following the Administration of a Dental Anxiety Questionnaire in the Dental Treatment Setting

Conditions
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Anxiety State

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Information to health provider without patient knowledge
* Behavioral: dentist behaviour and patient expectancy


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: scores 19 and above on MDAS read and write English 18 years of age and above Exclusion Criteria: mental illness

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Double


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Dentist behaviour<br>Patient completes the MDAS which is handed to receptionist who then gives the information to the dentist with patient knowledge | Behavioral: Information to health provider without patient knowledge<br>* The intervention consists of the assessment information from the MDAS questionnaire being given to the dentist via the receptionist without the knowledge of the patient<br>|
| Experimental: Dentist behaviour and patient expectancy<br>Patient completes the MDAS and hands to the dentist | Behavioral: dentist behaviour and patient expectancy<br>* patient give information about their dental anxiety to the dentist<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| State Anxiety | Speilberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, short form | immediately after dental appointment | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Discussion of dental anxiety with dentist | Simple 'yes' 'no' dichotomy | during appointment | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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dental anxiety, state anxiety, randomised control trial, psychological intervention