The Impact of Dental Anxiety on Blood Pressure Measurements in Patients at an Urgent Dental Care Clinic
Debora Pallos
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil.
Jorge Mahatma da Silva Souza
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil.
José Eduardo Pereira
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil.
Larissa Cavalcante
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil.
Najila Rocha
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil.
Fabiana Martins
*
School of Dentistry, Santo Amaro University, Rua Prof. Enéas de Siqueira Neto, 340 - Jardim das Imbuias, São Paulo - SP, 04829-300, Brazil and School of Dentistry, University of São Paulo, Avenida Prof. Lineu Prestes, 2227 - Butantã, São Paulo - SP, 05508-000, Brazil.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Aims: This study aimed to assess the fluctuations in blood pressure among patients prior to and during stressful urgent dental interventions in a university-based urgent dental care clinic.
Study Design: This was an observational cross-sectional study. We randomly included patients who were present in the waiting room of a university-based urgent dental care clinic.
Place and Duration of Study: Santo Amaro University Dental School with eight months of duration.
Methodology: Two calibrated researchers used an aneroid sphygmomanometer to assess study participants before (T1) and after (T2) the dental consultation. The comparison between the variation in BP measurement with the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), dental history, high blood pressure (HBP) and other comorbidities was statistically analyzed.
Results: Among the 75 participants, the mean age was 45.5 ± 12.7 years, and 66.7% were female. Prior to receiving dental care, 78.7% reported experiencing pain, with mean score of 5.2 ± 3.5 on the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), and 38.6%were on analgesics. Additionally, 44.4% of patients reported dental anxiety. Elevated blood pressure (HBP >130 mmHg) was observed in 60% of participants. Familiar history of hypertension was reported by 53.3%, while 28.9% had a formal diagnosis of hypertension; among these, only 50% were regularly using antihypertensive medications. The mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) was 131.9 mmHg, and the mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was 90.4 mmHg. The average variation between pre- and post-treatment measurements was a reduction of 3.7 mmHg in SBP and 1.7 mmHg in DBP. However, these changes were not statistically significant. Wilcoxon test yielded a P-value of 0.0555 for SBP and 0.5480 for DBP
Conclusion: We concluded that BP monitoring in the dental clinic is recommended, with most patients presenting HBP before the consultation, but these parameters were not an impediment to urgent dental care.
Keywords: White coat hypertension, hypertension, dental anxiety, blood pressure, dental urgent care