Concerns about dental treatment in patients awaiting sedation
Research type
Research Study
Full title
What are the concerns about dental treatment experienced by patients awaiting sedation, and how do they perceive their ability to cope with treatment with or without sedation?
IRAS ID
334106
Contact name
Chloe Feldon
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle University
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 7 months, 15 days
Research summary
Dental anxiety is common, with around 36% of UK adults experiencing moderate and 12% experiencing severe dental anxiety. Dental anxiety can lead to avoidance of dental treatment, which can lead to poor health outcomes and reduced quality of life.
Conscious sedation is a technique that can help people with severe dental anxiety to access treatment. This involves injection of a drug which relaxes the patient followed and local anaesthetic being injected into the mouth to numb the area, allowing the procedure to be completed. The patient is awake throughout and able to talk but might not remember the treatment afterwards.
Few NHS dentists in primary care settings in the North East offer conscious sedation, and therefore refer patients to the sedation department at the Newcastle Dental Hospital (NDH) where there is a waiting list. Although conscious sedation often helps patients to accept treatment, it is not an anxiety treatment and it is recommended that where conscious sedation is offered, psychological therapy should also be offered. However, this is not currently available at NDH.
When asked why they are anxious about dental treatment, people have responded to questionnaires stating that they find it ‘dangerous’, ‘disgusting’ or ‘unpredictable’. In interviews, patients’ reasons for their anxiety have included ‘unsupportive dentists’, ‘embarrassment’, ‘shame’, ‘powerlessness’, and ‘vulnerability’.
Although some of these factors may explain why some patients feel they are only able to cope with dental treatment with conscious sedation, there is a gap in the literature exploring this qualitatively (via interviews) from the perspective of people on the waiting list for this technique. The aims of this study are to explore the concerns about dental treatment amongst people waiting for dental sedation at the NDH, and to explore their thoughts about their ability to cope with or without sedation.
REC name
South West - Frenchay Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/SW/0153
Date of REC Opinion
9 Jan 2024
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion