Some
Perceptions Never Change
It seems like no
matter how far we have come in the world of
modern dentistry the perception of
the dentist has not changed much since the days of the old west where the
barber put his foot in your chest and yanked out your tooth. Research by the British Dental Health
Foundation suggests that visiting the dentist makes people more nervous than
snakes or spiders.
The
research echoes a March 2011, Adult Dental Health Survey which revealed half of
adults - especially women - were classified as having moderate to extreme
dental anxiety.
In a survey of 1004
people, the Foundation found what made them most nervous from a list including
heights, flying, injections, doctors, snakes, spiders, going to hospital or
visiting the dentist was visiting the dentist.
Over one
in five people ranked visiting their dentist as the thing that made them most
nervous - more than any other category.
Overall,
statistically:
1.
Heights topped the poll of biggest fears
2.
Closely followed by visiting the dentist
3.
Going to the hospital
4.
Snakes were rated fourth
5.
Spiders came fifth.
In comparison to physicians,
dentists also struggled. The Foundation discovered that nearly 10 times as many
people (22 per cent) were made most nervous by their dentist, as compared to
their physician (two per cent). The Adult Dental Health Survey points to two
dental treatments in particular as the main cause of these nerves: three out of
ten (30 per cent) adults said that having a tooth drilled would make them very
or extremely anxious. A similar number (28 per cent) of people reported
equivalent levels of anxiety about having a local anesthetic injection.
Dr. Nigel Carter,
Chief Executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, said: "Everyone in
the profession knows that dental anxiety is a major barrier for many people to
visit their dentist." What may
prove concerning is just how poorly the dental profession rates in comparison to
doctors. The comparison with snakes and spiders may appear frivolous, but it
does suggest dentists still have a lot of work to do to build public confidence. Unfortunately, in modern dentistry the gap
between reality and perception is the Grand Canyon, because there really is no
modern reason to fear your dentist. All
of the old procedures are now performed with great comfort and no pain to
patient.
Dr. Novy Scheinfeld is a trained prosthodontist with her post-graduate degree from Emory
University School of Dentistry. She was recently chosen as one of
America's Top Dentists for 2011 and 2012.
Novy
Scheinfeld, DDS, PC
290
Carpenter Drive, 200A
Atlanta
(Sandy Springs), GA 30328
404-256-3620
info@rightsmilecenter.com
Related
articles
Adult Dental Health
Survey 2009, the Health and Social Care Information Centre.
Published
March 2011.
