Abstract

Many practitioners do not realize how many current and potential patients have high dental fear. However, dentists do notice their characteristics—intervals between visits and chronic appointment cancellation. This article discusses the results of a major dental fear survey and the implications for practice. In 1986, 1,019 residents of Seattle were surveyed about their dental fears, dental experiences, and perceived oral health status. High dental fear in Seattle was found to affect 204 per 1,000 people. More than 66% acquired their fear in early childhood. Females were 1.8 times more likely than males to report high fear (P &spilt; .001). An individual was 1.6 times as likely to have high levels of dental fear if he or she had at least one oral problem such as bleeding gingiva (P = .004). Many practitioners do not realize how many current and potential patients have high dental fear. However, dentists do notice their characteristics—intervals between visits and chronic appointment cancellation. This article discusses the results of a major dental fear survey and the implications for practice. In 1986, 1,019 residents of Seattle were surveyed about their dental fears, dental experiences, and perceived oral health status. High dental fear in Seattle was found to affect 204 per 1,000 people. More than 66% acquired their fear in early childhood. Females were 1.8 times more likely than males to report high fear (P &spilt; .001). An individual was 1.6 times as likely to have high levels of dental fear if he or she had at least one oral problem such as bleeding gingiva (P = .004).