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ePaper created 2017-10-26, 15:28:59 | version 1.38.0
| practice management Laser as euphemism in Paediatric Dentistry Author: Dr Imneet Madan, UAE As per the American Academy of Paediatric Dentistry (AAPD), dental care is considered to be medically necessary in order to prevent and eliminate orofacial diseases, infections and pain. Anxiety towards dental appointments has always been considered natural and unavoidable. Keeping in mind this nature of apprehension time and time again, several methods of behaviour guidance have been introduced in order to alleviate anxiety, provide dental treatment safely and instil a positive dental attitude for lifetime. What is dental fear? Dental fear is defined as the specific anxiety which is the predisposition for a negative experience in the dental surgery.1 Dental fear in simple terms is de- scribed as the fear that any child would feel towards its dentist, dental treatment or dental appointment in general. Dental fear has been known to have several roots of origin. they have a pre-formed image of the experience which then decides their level of cooperation. Types of dental fear What gets measured, gets modified and corrected. Keeping the same principles in mind, dental fear has been graded by different rating scales. The most com- monly used in the common practice is the Frankl Behaviour Rating Scale. The Frankl Behaviour Rating Scale grades fear as follows: 1. Definitely negative: refuses treatment, cries force- fully, extremely negative behaviour associated with fear. 2. Negative: reluctant to accept treatment. Slight negativism. 3. Positive: accepts treatment, can become uncoop- erative if experiences something negative. 4. Definitely positive: unique behaviour, looks for- ward to the treatment. © S e r g i y Bykhunenko/S h utte r s t o c k . c o m Parental influence is one of the many fac- tors that influence children’s behaviour at the dental office. A positive parental atti- tude established in early life can directly bring in a positive attitude for the kids. According to the AAPD guidelines, ev- ery child should have the first dental check-up at the age when the first tooth erupts. This establishes a first contact with the dental healthcare provider. Early appointments also help to prevent the onset of a dental disease, thereby decreasing the treatment needs and opportunities for nega- tive experiences. Parents who have had multiple dental prob- lems and negative experience at the dentist generally transpire these fears onto the kids subconsciously and sometimes knowingly. When kids finally arrive at the dental office, 28 laser 3 2017