The dentist's attitudes and their interaction with patient involvement in oral hygiene compliance

The influence on patient compliance of the dentist's attitudes to his or her job and to his or her patient was studied in a sample of 82 patients. The dentist's attitudes were assessed at the beginning of dental treatment. Treatment consisted of cleaning, depuration and motivation. At follow-up examination after six months, attendance at follow-up and the development of plaque, calculus and gingivitis were significantly predicted by the dentist's attitudes. A causal model, which also included factors of patient involvement, was developed. The compliance-producing factors were, primarily, the establishment of sympathy and an informal relationship between dentist and patient. The patient's habit of regularly making visits to a dentist, in a complex way, also contributed to compliance.