Effect of Physician's Experience on Patient’s Anxiety During Impacted Third Molar Surgery

Abstract

Objective: To determine the prevalence of preoperative anxiety and postoperatif satisfaction in patients who is going to have third molar surgery and also to determine the influence of surgeon’s experience on anxiety level.

Materials and Methods: Patients were randomly divided into 3 groups who applied for extracting impacted lower third molar surgery. Each group was operated by different surgeons; by professor, senior assistant or junior assistant. Preoperative anxiety values were measured with Spielberg State and Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) test and postoperative satisfaction were measured by the self-prepared satisfaction questionnarie.

Results: Preoperative dental anxiety values of female patients were found to be statistically higher than male patients (p <0.05). In addition, It was determined that there was no statistically significant difference between the mean STAI-I scores of the female patients under and over age of 30 (p> 0.05). However, the mean STAI-I score of those aged 30 and under is higher than the those over the age of 30 in male patients (p <0.05). It was determined that the experience of the surgeon performing the operation have no significant effect on preoperative anxiety values (p> 0.05).

Conclusion: In this study, three oral surgeons with different year experience performed all the operations and no significant change of anxiety was recorded. Results of this study indicates that female patients at all ages and male patients under age of 30 were more anxious than the rest of the patients.