Dental fear and anxiety in patients can block their access to healthcare services, increasing the risk of oral health deterioration and affecting their quality of life.
The current analysis focuses on the foreign experience of fear and anxiety as a reason for limiting access to dental care and on the opinion and attitude of Bulgarian patients towards this access barrier. It is based on a standardized questionnaire collected through an online survey.
Studies in this area indicate that the main socio-demographic factors, as well as previous traumatic experiences, negative attitudes, etc., are associated to varying degrees with patients' anxiety. These cause them to avoid visiting the dentist, which creates a "vicious cycle" of fears. Different approaches are applied in practice to manage this condition.
The results of the analysis are analogous to those of other similar studies. Patients who rate their dental status higher, those who have additional health insurance, and those with a higher level of education trust their dentist more. They do not delay any dental care treatment; respectively, anxiety and fear are not serious barriers for them to accessing and accepting dental care.
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