COMPARISON OF DENTAL ANXIETY AND FEAR AMONG VOCATIONAL SCHOOL STUDENTS AND EVALUATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ORAL HEALTH HABITS AND THE TYPE OF EDUCATION

Abstract

This cross-sectional study evaluated the dental anxiety and fear (DFA) levels, and also the influence of basic medical health knowledge on oral health attitudes in the students of the medical and paramedical vocational schools. 291 students were included the study. Modified Dental Anxiety Scale’s (MDAS) and Dental Fear Scale’s (DFS) questions were used to define degree of anxiety and fear. The students' answers were evaluated considering the assigned cut points for MDAS (no fear: 5-11, low fear: 12-18, high fear: 19-25), for DFS (pointslow: 0-40, moderate: 41-60, high: 61-80, extreme high: 81+). Mann-Whitney U Tests were used to compare two school groups. Chi-square test was used to analyze categorical variables (α:0.05). Gender and the school program have been determined to have an important impact on DFA levels of the students (p<0.05). The scores of students in the vocational medical school were significantly lower than the scores of the paramedical vocational school students (p<0.05). The index scores for female students were significantly higher than the scores defined for male students (p<0.05). The type of school program influenced dental anxiety. The study points out that being familiar with health terms may be effective to manage DFA.