Relaxation and Systematic Desensitization in Reducing Dental Anxiety

The anxiety experience in dentist's office is one of the main barriers that prevent patients from using dental services, therefore a specific strategy is needed. The aim was to compare the efficacy of two methods: relaxation therapy and systematic desensitization. The general hypothesis is that the use of methods for reducing dental anxiety has a different efficacy. Participants were 60 patients of a dental clinic in Bucharest (scores MDAS213). Anxious reactions were assessed with MDAS and DFS. After using the relaxation technique, the anxiety level decreased to the greatest extent, both for the global anxiety index and for its components.