Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34814891›Full record

ArticleBMC oral health2021

Dental anxiety and potentially traumatic events: a cross-sectional study based on the Tromsø Study-Tromsø 7.

Hege Nermo, Tiril Willumsen, Kamilla Rognmo, Jens C Thimm, Catharina Elisabeth Arfwedson Wang, Jan-Are Kolset Johnsen

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC oral health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed
3.5field-weighted citation impact, top 7% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

18 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Hege NermoThe Public Dental Health Service Competence Center of Northern Norway, Tromsø, Norway. hege.nermo@uit.no.
Tiril WillumsenDepartment of Pediatric Dentistry and Behavioural Science, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Kamilla RognmoDepartment of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
Jens C ThimmDepartment of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
Catharina Elisabeth Arfwedson WangDepartment of Psychology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
Jan-Are Kolset JohnsenDepartment of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
UiT The Arctic University of Norway · NONorthern Norway Regional Health Authority · NOUniversity of Bergen · NOUniversity of Oslo · NO

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe objectives of the study were to describe the prevalence of dental anxiety and the possible associations between dental anxiety and potentially traumatic events in an adult population.

methodThe study is based on cross-sectional questionnaire data from the 7th wave of the Tromsø Study, a study of the adult general population in the municipality of Tromsø carried out in 2015-2016. The Modified Dental Anxiety Scale was used to measure dental anxiety across potentially traumatic events, oral health, dental attendance (avoidance) and current mental health symptoms (Hopkins Symptom Checklist). Individuals with high and low dental anxiety scores were compared to investigate differences in the distribution of potentially traumatic events, current mental health symptoms, avoidance, sex and oral health, and hierarchical multivariable regression was used to study the influence of traumatic events on dental anxiety.

resultsHigh dental anxiety was reported by 2.9% of the sample and was most prevalent among females and in the youngest age groups. Individuals with high dental anxiety reported more current mental health symptoms, and they were more likely to report poorer oral health and more irregular dental visits compared to individuals with no or lower dental anxiety scores. Concerning traumatic events, the reporting of painful or frightening dental treatment showed the biggest difference between those with high dental anxiety and low dental anxiety scores (a moderate effect). The hierarchical regression model indicated that reporting sexual abuse, traumatic medical treatment in hospital and childhood neglect significantly predicted dental anxiety in the step they were entered in, but only sexual abuse remained a significant individual contributor after controlling for current mental health symptoms.

conclusionsThe prevalence of high dental anxiety was lower than expected (2.9%), but dentally anxious individuals expressed a high burden of mental health symptoms, poor oral health and the avoidance of dental care. The regression analysis indicated that experiences with sexual abuse could affect dental anxiety levels in the absence of generalised symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Indexed as

Dental AnxietyMental DisordersAdultAnxietyChildCross-Sectional StudiesDepressionFemaleHumansOral HealthPrevalenceDental anxietyOral healthPsychological distressPsychological traumaPublic health dentistrySexual trauma

Identifiers

PMID34814891
PMCPMC8609887
OpenAlexW3174569435

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.