Surgical or non-surgical periodontal treatment: factors affecting patient decision making.
BACKGROUND
This study explored which factors affected patients' decisions to pursue either surgical or non-surgical periodontal treatment.


METHODS
Data were collected from 74 patients at a regularly scheduled periodontal appointment, at which each patient was told that periodontal treatment was needed, and 2 weeks following the actual treatment. The surveys assessed the patients' decisions and potential determinants of these decisions. The dental anxiety scale-revised, the state-trait anxiety inventory, and the Iowa dental control index were used to measure psychosocial factors.


RESULTS
Patients who decided to have surgery did not differ from patients who decided against surgery in sociodemographic variables such as gender, age, education, and socioeconomic status, nor in their desire for control over the treatment decision. However, they had less dental fear and less general anxiety than the non-surgery patients. Although the two patient groups did not differ in their responses concerning how well the dentists had informed them about the procedure, they differed in the degree of trust and rapport with their dentists.


CONCLUSIONS
The less dentally fearful and anxious patients were in general and the more they trusted their provider and felt they had good rapport, the more likely they were to accept surgical periodontal treatment. These results stress the importance of good patient-provider communication.
School of Dentistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1078, USA.
Amit M
AM
Patel
Philip S
PS
Richards
Hom-Lay
HL
Wang
Marita R
MR
Inglehart
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003657:Decision Making; D016854:Dental Anxiety / Q000523:psychology*; D003812:Dentist-Patient Relations; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008347:Manifest Anxiety Scale; D008875:Middle Aged; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D010358:Patient Participation; D010510:Periodontal Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires