Reasons for use and non-use of dental services among people visiting a dental college hospital in India: A descriptive cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE: To find out the reasons for use and non-use of dental services among people visiting a dental college hospital in India. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out on 180 people, aged 15–65 years visiting the outpatient department of a dental college hospital in India. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data about the history of dental visits and reasons for use and non-use of dental services. RESULTS: For a majority of the people (38.5%), time since the last dental visit was more than 2 years, and the main reason for visiting a dentist was dental pain (35.3%). Majority of the people had undergone extraction of teeth in their previous dental visit (44.3%). The major reason cited for not visiting a dentist was the presence of dental problem that was not severe enough to go to a dentist (43.1%). CONCLUSION: Majority of the people were “problem-oriented visitors” rather than “prevention oriented visitors.”