Concerns About Dental Treatment in Adults with Dental Anxiety: A Qualitative Synthesis

Dental anxiety is a common experience and can be considered a public health issue. This qualitative evidence synthesis used a thematic synthesis approach, to identify and synthesise findings of qualitative studies exploring adults’ lived experiences of dental anxiety.Systematic searches of Embase, Medline, Scopus, PsycINFO, Web of Science, ProQuest, CINAHL and the Cochrane Library identified eleven qualitative studies (total N = 308; age range 18–75 years; 62% female) exploring adults’ dental anxiety experiences Data were extracted and critically appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP, 2018) checklist for qualitative research, then synthesised with confidence in synthesised findings assessed using GRADE‑CERQual criteria.Eleven qualitative studies (308 adult participants) yielded 18 review findings, which were organised into nine descriptive themes and synthesised into four analytical themes. The constructed themes captured dental anxiety as a convergence of past and present experiences, shaped by the patient-clinician relationships and systemic factors in dental care. The role of shame contributed to avoidance behaviours, and the use of personal coping strategies was linked to regaining a sense of control which was perceived to be minimal whilst in the dental chair. Findings highlight the benefits of qualitative research methods for understanding the complexity of dental anxiety.