Correlation of dental anxiety with oral health status and treatment needs among 12-year old indian school going children

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Dental anxiety is primarily associated with learning negative behaviour which may be attributed to the aggressive condition process during childhood and adolescence and is considered to be the main reason for avoiding dental care. Hence the present study aimed to assess the correlation of Dental Anxiety with Oral Health Status and Treatment Needs. METHODS: Cross sectional study was carried out among 12-year old school going children of Hyderabad City, India. Dental anxiety was assessed using the Modified Child Dental Anxiety Scale (MCDAS). Oral Health Status and Treatment Needs were assessed using Gingival Index and Dentition status and treatment needs based on Basic Oral Health Survey. Multi-group analysis was done using Analysis of Variance. p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: In the present study, females had higher significant total mean MCDAS score as compared to males (22.8±5.4 vs.19.66±6.0) (p=0.00001*). Study participants with no history of previous dental visits (21.55±5.6) showed a statistically higher significant total MCDAS score compared to their counterpart (p=0.006*). On the other hand, Decayed component (r=0.1335*) and overall DMFT (r=0.1384*) had a significant positive correlation with MCDAS score. CONCLUSION: The study concluded that there is a correlation between dental anxiety and dentition status and treatment needs among 12 year old children. (www.actabiomedica.it)