Assessment of dental anxiety in edentulous subjects

In this investigation an anxiety scale was constructed to measure dental anxiety in full denture patients. Furthermore, the relationship of this anxiety scale with denture history, denture satisfaction, and personality traits was investigated. A group of 125 patients who were on a waiting list to have new dentures constructed participated in this study. The coefficient alpha value of the anxiety scale was 0.81. Significant correlations were found with number of years with complete dentures (r = -0.20), with denture complaints (r = 0.18-0.19) and with some personality traits (r = 0.21-0.32). Further research into the role of dental anxiety with respect to dental behaviour and dental satisfaction in edentulous populations seems useful.