Variations in dental anxiety among middle-aged and elderly women in Sweden: a longitudinal study between 1968 and 1996.
Cross-sectional studies have shown that older individuals are significantly less dentally anxious than younger ones. However, research has not been able to show if this is a cohort effect or an effect of fear declining with age. If it is a cohort effect, dental anxiety among the elderly may pose a greater-than-expected problem for the providers of dental services. With the exception of longitudinal studies in children and a three-year follow-up on adults, no truly longitudinal epidemiological studies concerning dental anxiety have been performed. The aim of this project was to investigate how dental anxiety changes with aging. In a longitudinal population study of women in Göteborg, Sweden, starting in 1968, 1462 women aged 38 to 54 participated. A representative subsample of 778 women took part in a psychiatric examination where an investigation of dental anxiety was included. The same questions were also included when these women were re-examined in 1974, 1992, and 1996. Three hundred seventy-five women were still eligible for investigation in 1996. In 1968-69, 48 (12.8%) of the participating women assessed themselves as "very afraid" or "terrified" when visiting the dentist, and in 1996 the frequency was 21 (5.6%) among the same women. In 1968-69, 180 women (48%) reported no dental anxiety when visiting the dentist, and 28 years later the frequency was 230 (61%). In the three youngest age groups, dental anxiety decreased significantly (p < 0.001) over the 28-year period. Older compared with younger women reported significantly less dental anxiety, and this was an age effect rather than a cohort effect. Thus, this longitudinal study supported the hypothesis that dental fear, like many other general and specific phobias, declines with age.
Hägglin
C
C
Department of Endodontology & Oral Diagnosis, Faculty of Odontology, Göteborg University, Sweden.
Berggren
U
U
Hakeberg
M
M
Hällstrom
T
T
Bengtsson
C
C
D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D016854:Dental Anxiety / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008875:Middle Aged; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data