J M Armfield1. 1. Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, School of Dentistry, The University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. jason.armfield@adelaide.edu.au
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C) is a theoretically derived test developed to allow clinicians and researchers to measure a person's level of dental fear. Population norms have not previously been made available for the IDAF-4C. The aim of this study was to provide Australian norms for the IDAF-4C using percentile ranks and to examine associations between scores and individual-level characteristics, dental avoidance and fear of pain. METHODS: A stratified random sample of 1511 Australian adults yielded complete questionnaire data for 1063 individuals (70.4%). Percentile ranks were calculated for IDAF-4C full scale scores stratified by age and gender. RESULTS: IDAF-4C mean scores varied significantly by age, gender, income, and speaking a language other than English at home. Tables to convert raw scores to percentiles showed that full scale scores varied by age and gender. Scores on the IDAF-4C had strong and significant associations with avoidance of the dentist due to fear, average dental visiting frequency and anxiety about pain when going to the dentist. CONCLUSIONS: Population norms allow clinicians or researchers to compare results for an individual or subgroup to the Australian population. It is recommended that a dental fear scale be used to screen all dental patients for dental fear to enable a more tailored and effective dental treatment experience.
BACKGROUND: The Index of Dental Anxiety and Fear (IDAF-4C) is a theoretically derived test developed to allow clinicians and researchers to measure a person's level of dental fear. Population norms have not previously been made available for the IDAF-4C. The aim of this study was to provide Australian norms for the IDAF-4C using percentile ranks and to examine associations between scores and individual-level characteristics, dental avoidance and fear of pain. METHODS: A stratified random sample of 1511 Australian adults yielded complete questionnaire data for 1063 individuals (70.4%). Percentile ranks were calculated for IDAF-4C full scale scores stratified by age and gender. RESULTS: IDAF-4C mean scores varied significantly by age, gender, income, and speaking a language other than English at home. Tables to convert raw scores to percentiles showed that full scale scores varied by age and gender. Scores on the IDAF-4C had strong and significant associations with avoidance of the dentist due to fear, average dental visiting frequency and anxiety about pain when going to the dentist. CONCLUSIONS: Population norms allow clinicians or researchers to compare results for an individual or subgroup to the Australian population. It is recommended that a dental fear scale be used to screen all dental patients for dental fear to enable a more tailored and effective dental treatment experience.
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