A case series analysing patients with dental anxiety: a patient-centred model based on psychological profiling

Abstract

<ns4:p>Anxiety and distress can jeopardize dental care experience of patients and may affect the clinical result. Although a wide range of sedation and analgesia techniques are currently available to relieve distress and pain during dental procedures, operative models to choose the most effective sedation-analgesic strategies are lacking.</ns4:p><ns4:p> This case series proposes a patient-centred model to optimize patients’ cooperation during dental care delivery. We describe how to achieve correct anaesthesia by using the least sedative procedure, accounting for the dental procedure needed and patient’s psychological profile.</ns4:p><ns4:p> Five patients were considered as paradigmatic to show the balance between patients’ subjective experiences and the clinical procedures: a patient with low stress, good compliance (case 1); moderate stress and reduction in compliance (case 2); anxious patient (case 3); patient with acute anxiety and emotional distress (case 4); anguished patient (case 5).</ns4:p><ns4:p> A multimodal treatment of emotional and behavioural condition and a patient-centred model approach contributed to achieve the best patient satisfaction in the five cases detailed here.</ns4:p>

Reducing the anxiety of patients undergoing an oral biopsy by means of graphic novels: an open-label randomized clinical trial

“…Patients with a specific phobia often experience intense and immediate fear and/or anxiety prior to dental treatment and/or an oral biopsy. Their psychological state of stress and discomfort usually develops when they are in the waiting room, to possibly include negative intrusive thoughts (e.g., "it will hurt, I will be diagnosed with a terrible disease")( 3 ). Whilst often recognizing that their fear or anxiety is excessive, these patients experience prolonged states of anxiety to the point of avoiding phobic situations ( 4 ).…”