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| Research article summary (published 30 Dec 2008): |
Psychological treatment of fearful and phobic special needs patients.
Full Abstract
Dental fears and phobias trouble patients with and without special needs, and they are a problem for dentists, as well. This article reviews current research and literature related to methods used to alleviate dental fear and concludes that while some important psychological methods are available, much work is left to be done in this area. It is clear that there is an important role for psychological and behavioral input to the dentist-patient interaction. While dental phobia represents a class of special needs itself, patients with other important disabilities (e.g., physical or cognitive impairments) are sometimes comorbidly phobic, a condition often missed or misdiagnosed by treating practitioners. Office-based techniques that focus on relaxation, breathing, imagery, hypnosis, and effective use of operatory language are described. The methods advocated here can be used with patients having mild or moderate cognitive impairments. Readings are recommended for the dentist or auxiliary practitioner interested in learning these techniques.
Author information
Author/s: Peltier, Bruce (B);
Affiliation: University of the Pacific, San Francisco, California, USA. bpeltier(-atsign-)pacific.edu
Journal and publication information
Publication Type: Journal Article; Review
Journal: Special care in dentistry : official publication of the American Association of Hospital Dentists, the Academy of Dentistry for the Handicapped, and the American Society for Geriatric Dentistry (Spec Care Dentist), published in United States. (Language: eng)
Reference: 2009-Jan; vol 29 (issue 1) : pp 51-7
Dates: Created 2009/01/20; Completed 2009/06/17;
PMID: 19152568, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 6/17/2009, IMS Date: 17 Jun 2009 00:00:00)
Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.
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