Three things to avoid doing if a patient has dental anxiety

As many patients start making their post-pandemic dentist visits, it is important your team is making it easy and comfortable for them. A study found that 46.7 percent of respondents said they rescheduled or delayed their dental visits due to the pandemic. 

Ensuring patients feel safe and comfortable during their visit can increase their chances of making a return visit. Our sedation dentistry Austin TX team wants to share three things you should avoid if you have a patient with dental anxiety. 

What is dental anxiety? 

Dental anxiety is typically used to describe the fear and stress that comes with visiting a dentist. It is believed that, in most cases, this fear could have resulted due to a traumatic dentist visit. That bad experience resulted in developing a negative attitude towards dentists. 

Signs a patient has dental anxiety

People with dental anxiety will exhibit one or a few of these signs:

• Jump with the sound of dental equipment

• Feels and looks nauseous

• Sweating 

• Low blood pressure

• Avoids dental treatments

Three things to avoid doing if a patient has dental anxiety

If you have noticed that your dental patient feels uneasy and nervous about their visit, be sure to avoid these things. 

Avoid harsh and graphic words

For several people with dental anxiety, one of their biggest fears is feeling pain. They might have had a bad experience in the dentist growing up and associated dentists with pain. The last thing you want to do is say something that will resurface their trauma. You and your dental team should avoid using words like “needle,” “hurt” and “sharp.”

Do not dismiss their worries

If you have ever had a nervous dental patient, you might understand that many different concerns will arise. One mistake that dentists make is ignoring their patient’s worries. 

Dismissing their worries will only cause them to feel more nervous. Instead, listen to the patient’s concerns and explain what the procedure will include. For some dental patients, knowing what will happen will help reduce their worries. 

Keep needles and equipment out of sight

One common reason why dental patients have dental anxiety is due to a fear of needles. People may be afraid of needles due to previous trauma or sensitivity to pain. This fear may cause patients to feel dizzy or even faint. 

If a patient expresses their fear about needles, keep needles and dental equipment out of sight. Some tricks that many dental professionals use are covering tools or keeping them out of sight until use. 

How level 1 sedation helps patients with dental anxiety

Level 1 sedation, also commonly known as minimal sedation or oral sedation, produces a minimally depressed level of consciousness. It is administered through an oral sedative called anxiolytic. This medication will lessen anxiety in dental patients for a short period of time. 

In order for dentists to provide this option to patients, they need to maintain their level 1 sedation certification. It can be renewed through a sedation dentistry Austin TX course. Before booking a course, make sure the course is approved by the Board of Dentistry in your state. 

Choose the best sedation dentistry in Austin TX course!

At Midwest Sedation Consultants, we have level 1 sedation recertification courses! They are all online for your convenience. Register to one of our sources here!