• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.369-376
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• 2015

The purposes of this study were to assess dental fear and anxiety level of patients attending a dental clinic using the dental fear survey (DFS) scale, to apply interventions chosen by patients for reducing dental fear and anxiety and measure their effects. This study surveyed 34 patients who visited a dental clinic in Seoul about their self-rated health and their experience of dental fear, and measured the level of dental fear using DFS. Trained dental hygienists applied interventions desired by the patients for reducing dental fear and anxiety and, for each intervention, examined the patients' satisfaction (very helpful [5 point]~not helpful at all [1 point]). Collected data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics ver. 21.0 through independent t-test or one-way ANOVA for difference in level of fear according to related characteristics, and through Wilcoxon signed rank test for comparison between before and after the intervention. The subjects' mean level of fear (DFS score) was 44.53, which was an average level, and the level of dental fear was relatively high for stimulus-response (2.72). The level of dental fear was higher in those who had experienced pains or indirect dental fear from dental treatment in the past, and those whose subjectively perceived health state was poor (p<0.05). With regard to the applied dental fear intervention, 'Helpful (3.57)' was the most common answer. Overall satisfaction before and after the application of dental fear intervention was generally high as 4.37 and 4.35, respectively, but it decreased slightly after the intervention. In order to lower the level of dental fear, it is considered effective to survey not only the level of dental fear but also patients' need of dental fear interventions and to apply a suitable intervention. It is also required to educate dental workers and to develop related manuals.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.493-502
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• 2012

The aim of this study was to investigate the oral health problems among type 2 diabetes patients and suggest basic data for the promotion of their body and oral health by emphasizing the correlation between hemoglobin A1c and subjective oral health status. For 174 patients with type 2 diabetes and who were older than 40 years old, the questionnaire and measurement of hemoglobin A1c were conducted from January 9, 2012 to March 9, 2012. The results of the study were as follows. 1. They tended to be most aware of the following; 'inflammation on the oral mucosa' and 'pain on the oral mucosa' among the symptoms of oral mucosa, 'gum bleeding when brushing teeth' among the symptoms of periodontal disease, and 'feels dry in general' among the symptoms of xerostomia. 2. The patients with longer duration of diabetes showed greater recognition with regards to the symptoms of oral mucosa disease, periodontal disease, and xerostomia (p<0.05). 3. The group with regular meal showed lower level of hemoglobin A1c (p<0.001). 4. The level of hemoglobin A1c was higher in the group that recognized 'burning sensation', 'gum bleeding', 'gum recession' and 'bad breath' (p<0.05) as well as in the group that responded 'get up at night to drink' among the symptoms of xerostomia (p<0.05). Especially the symptoms of periodontal disease were revealed to be a factor that showed the 3rd strongest correlation with hemoglobin A1c.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.493-500
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• 2013

The study aims to determine the status of oral health of mental illness patients and establish the preliminary data. The examinations and questionnaire survey were done 92 psychiatric patients to measure sociodemographic characteristics, decayed, missing and filled teeth (DMFT) index, patient hygiene performance (PHP) index, community periodontal index of treatment need (CPITN). Result of the missing teeth index in the state of oral health was higher in the hospital group (6.42) while the filled teeth index was higher in the center group (4.78). In the DMFT index, mental illness patients were higher than the national sample. The oral health status of medical aid recipients was poorer as the subjects were older and less educated (p<0.05). The PHP index was 3.41, close to the bad oral hygiene state. The hospital group (81.7%) required higher need for periodontal treatment. The periodontal health state was much poorer especially when the subject was in the age of 40's and 60's, received less education, and had no family (p<0.05). $CPITN_3$ was higher in the hospital group (13.3%) than the national sample (5.7%). The mental illness patients were socially vulnerable, therefore oral health care program should be needed and age, education level, health insurance type, presence of family and other factors needs to be considered in this approach.

• Journal of dental hygiene science
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.161-166
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• 2007

Relationship of Dental Health Assessment to the Number of Existing Permanent Tooth in Senior Citizens visited a dental hospital or clinic from Some Regions. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of the dental health assessment of elderly people who were at the age of 65 and up to the number of existing permanent tooth in an effort to lay the groundwork for pinpointing problems with their oral status and developing programs geared toward improving their dental health and quality of life. The findings of the study were as follows: 1. Regarding self-perceived dental health, the largest group of the senior citizens that accounted for 57.9 percent didn't find themselves to be in good dental health. The second largest group that represented 32.5 percent thought their dental health was at an ordinary level, and the third greatest number of them that stood at 9.5 percent considered themselves to be in good dental health. Their self-perceived dental health status was statistically significantly different according to education and monthly income, and whether they had a job or not made a statistically significant difference to that as well(p < .01, p < .001). 2. In terms of taste appreciation, 58.7 percent, the largest group, didn't appreciate one or two kinds of taste, and their taste appreciation was statistically significantly different according to education and monthly income(p < .05, p < .01). 3. As for chewing ability, 20.6 percent were able to chew well. In regard to digestion, 69.0 percent had an ordinary level of digestive power. 4. Concerning the number of existing permanent tooth, 38.9 percent, the greatest percentage, had ten or less permanent teeth. By education, the possession of 21or more permanent teeth(40.0%) was most common among those who received high-school or higher education. The greatest group of the senior citizens with a job had 11 to 20 permanent teeth(41.7%), and the largest number of the elderly people whose monthly income was 500 thousand won or more were in possession of 11 to 20 permanent teeth(41.7%). The number of existing permanent tooth statistically significantly differed with their general characteristics(p < .01). 5. As to connections between dental health and the number of existing permanent tooth, 21 permanent teeth or more were owned by those who were in good dental health, who appreciated different tastes and whose chewing ability was good. So there was a statistically significant relationship between the two.