Effect of fear on dental utilization behaviors and oral health outcome

Effect of fear on dental utilization behaviors and oral health outcome
Issue online:
04 Jul 2007
Submitted 18 November 2005; accepted 11 May 2006
To cite this article: Xiaoxian Meng, Marc W. Heft, Margaret M. Bradley, Peter J. Lang (2007)
Effect of fear on dental utilization behaviors and oral health outcome
Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology 35 (4), 292Ò301.
doi:10.1111/j.1600-0528.2007.00315.x
Blackwell Synergy

Xiaoxian Meng11Department of Diagnostic Sciences, University of Alabama at Birmingham, AL, Marc W. Heft22Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Diagnostic Sciences, Margaret M. Bradley33Department of Clinical and Health Psychology and Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, FL, USA and Peter J. Lang33Department of Clinical and Health Psychology and Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, FL, USA

Xiaoxian Meng, Department of Diagnostic Sciences, School of Dentistry, Room SDB 111, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1530 Third Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35294-0007, USA
Tel: +1 205 996 5326
Fax: +1 205 975 0603
e-mail: xmeng@uab.edu
Meng X, Heft MW, Bradley MM, Lang PJ. Effect of fear on dental utilization behaviors and oral health outcome. Community Dent Oral Epidemiol 2007; 35: 292Ò301. © 2007 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2007 Blackwell Munksgaard

Abstract
Objectives: This paper assesses the effect of fear on a number of dental utilization behaviors and oral heath outcome in a sample of adult Floridians.

Methods: A telephone survey was conducted in 2004 among 504 adult Floridians. Data collected included sociodemographic factors, specific fear of dental pain (FDP), global FDP, global dental fear, three measures of dental utilization behaviors, and one measure of oral health outcome. Chi-squared tests and logistic regression analyses were conducted to quantify the individual and multivariate associations between fear factors and four behavior and outcome measures.

Results: Global FDP was significantly associated with putting off making a dental appointment and approach to dental treatment. Global dental fear showed an independent negative impact on all four behavior and outcome measures; reports regarding specific fear of painful dental events were not significantly associated with four behavior and outcome measures.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that: (i) dental fear and FDP have independent negative effects on dental utilization behaviors and oral health outcome after controlling for other sociodemographic and general health factors; and (ii) global dental fear encompasses broader components than FDP.

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