An update on psychiatric disorders in relation to dental treatment

Psychiatric disorders like depression and anxiety are commonly encountered in patients presenting to dental practitioners. The symptoms at presentation may not always be straightforward and, if not suspected and specifically explored, can often be missed. If unrecognized and hence subsequently untreated, this can have numerous adverse consequences to the patient and the health service. Hence, it is important that dental practitioners are more aware of the varying presentations, assessment and management of psychiatric disorders in their patients. In this paper, we focus on description of the common psychiatric disorders and their assessment from a dental practitioner's perspective. There is clearly a need for greater collaboration between dental practitioners and psychiatrists.