ABSTRACT

Objective^.: To correlate the impact of pre-operative anxiety and its influence on endodontic treatment.

Methods: Data of 500 patients who were scheduled for endodontic treatment were enrolled in the study. These patients were treated in the Dental Section of Islam Dental College, Sialkot. Modified^. Dental^. Anxiety^. Scale^. (MDAS) was used to assess the patient’s anxiety levels during endodontic treatment^.. Numeric pain scale^. was used to document the pain perceived during endodontic therapy.

Results^: Anxiety and pain showed a statistically significant correlation-ship during endodontic treatment. Our findings were suggestive of increased pain perception during endodontic therapy and its association with anxiety. Minimal anxiety was found in 25 cases, mild anxiety was found in 216 cases, moderate anxiety was found in 127 cases, high anxiety was found in 129 cases and extreme anxiety was found in 3 cases. 250 patients reported with mild pain, 158 patients reported with moderate pain and 92 cases reported severe pain.

Conclusion^: Assessment of anxiety levels prior to performing endodontic procedures can pro-actively benefit the patient and the operator. Yes, advanced methods of pain control are available in endodontics but they need to be implicated judiciously. Assessing patient’s anxiety and then providing endodontic care will help improve treatment outcome.