Does preoperative anxiety influence endodontic skill performance and students' subjective perceptions in an...

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Endodontics
• Psychology in Medicine

Background:

• Preoperative state anxiety is a known factor affecting student performance in dentistry.
• Its specific impact on root canal treatment (RCT) outcomes in simulated dental environments requires further investigation.
• This study examined the relationship between anxiety and RCT performance in dental students.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between preoperative state anxiety and technical performance during dental students' initial simulated root canal treatments.
• To evaluate the influence of anxiety on subjective outcomes, including perceived difficulty, self-confidence, and comprehension.
• To explore the relationship between anxiety levels and specific procedural errors in root canal therapy.

Main Methods:

• Ninety-three dental students completed the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-State (STAI-S) before performing simulated root canal treatments on extracted molars.
• Technical performance was assessed using objective criteria (total score, accuracy, cleanliness, errors).
• Subjective outcomes (anxiety, confidence, comprehension, perceived difficulty) were measured post-procedure, with statistical analyses including t-tests, Mann-Whitney U, and Spearman correlations.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in overall technical performance or treatment duration were found between low- and high-anxiety groups.
• The low-anxiety group showed a higher incidence of over-instrumentation in mandibular procedures (p=0.040).
• High-anxiety students reported lower self-confidence during mandibular procedures and reduced comprehension during maxillary procedures (p<0.05), with correlations indicating anxiety's weak association with these subjective measures.

Conclusions:

• Preoperative state anxiety did not negatively affect dental students' technical root canal treatment skills in a simulated setting.
• Anxiety appears to influence subjective perceptions (self-confidence, comprehension) more than objective procedural outcomes.
• Findings suggest that anxiety management strategies may be beneficial for enhancing the overall learning experience in preclinical dental education.