Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:
Define fear, anxiety, phobia, and pain. Describe how they are related.
List some of the methods of assessment of dental fear or phobia.
Describe the physiological reactions to fear stimuli.
List common reasons for patient's fear of dentistry.
List some current methods used by dentists to reduce the anxiety of their patients.
Describe the role of the dental staff in reducing patient anxiety.
List actions that experts recommend avoiding in order to reduce patient anxiety.
Describe ways of teaching the patient to relax during dental treatment.
Describe some current methods of anesthesia.
List the conditions when is it appropriate to refer the patient to a mental health professional or a dental fears treatment clinic associated with a dental school.
