Purpose: Dental patients feel anxious before most dental treatments presuming that the procedure will cause pain and discomfort. Extraction in oral surgery has been reported to induce highest level of anxiety among other procedures. The surgical removal of mandibular and maxillary third molars is the most commonly performed dentoalveolar procedures in oral and maxillofacial surgery. Individuals who lack knowledge about the procedure are the ones who have preoperative anxiety. Materials and methods:Preoperative information about the procedure significantly reduces patients' anxiety. In this study, several preoperative variables were recorded (during preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative phases) and patients' anxiety regarding third molar extraction was assessed through the use of questionnaire. Results:The sample was composed of 100 patients (50 female patients and 50 male patients) divided into two groups. The first had some previous experience with extractions (50 patients) and the second had no experience (50 patients). The most frequent questions regarded the number of teeth to be extracted, and the most prevalent misconception was about medications before surgery. Patients with a previous history of dental extractions had more questions about use of medication before surgery. Patients without previous experience with extraction had more concerns about local anesthesia techniques. Conclusion:Patients with a history of tooth extraction and those without it presented variation of knowledge about third molar surgery. Both groups of patients needed detailed perioperative instructions about the procedure. These results may provide oral and maxillofacial surgeons with useful information about patients' knowledge throughout the surgical process.

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