A psychological intervention for reducing pain during dental hygiene treatment

Previous research has shown that individuals who "catastrophize" are more likely to experience high levels of pain and emotional distress during dental treatment. In the present study, we examined the effects of emotional disclosure on the pain and emotional distress experienced by "catastrophizers" and "noncatastrophizers" during dental hygiene treatment. Eighty undergraduate students were randomly assigned to a dental-worry disclosure condition or a control condition prior to scaling. In the disclosure condition, participants were asked to write about their dental worries before having dental hygiene treatment. In the control condition, participants were asked to write about their activities of the previous day. Consistent with previous research, catastrophizers in the control condition reported significantly more pain and emotional distress than noncatastrophizers, F (1, 76) = 9.86, P < .001. Disclosure reduced the pain and emotional distress of catastrophizers, but increased the pain and emotional distress of noncatastrophizers, F (1, 76) = 6.1, P < .01. While catastrophizers benefited from disclosure in regard to their immediate physical and emotional experience, their levels of catastrophizing and dental anxiety remained essentially unchanged. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.