Dental phobia or dentophobia is generally defined as a fear of dentists and of dental procedures. It is actually a very common fear that often involves fears that are more defined, specific, and individual. One of these is the fear of needles, one of the most common phobias known to man. This is especially true in the field of dentistry since it is nearly impossible for the patient to look away because the needle is injected in the gum or cheek.

The 1988 Adult Dental Health Survey in the UK reports that 8% of respondents have an existing fear of injections (Todd & Lader 1991). Other studies suggest that nearly 5% of the population may be afraid of needles in general.

The level of fear is different among various individuals. While some people are phobic of dental injections in particular, others are afraid of almost any kind of needle. Some people will even go to extremes to avoid injections.

Most needle phobics have had a particularly bad past experience with a dental injection. There are a number of reasons why this came to be:

• The dentist lacked empathy. While dental students are taught compassion at dental school, not all dentists are created equal. Some will have more empathy with their patients than others.
• Lack of using topical anesthetics or numbing gels. While it is possible to give painless injections without it, numbing gel should always be applied.
• Using a dull needle. This has become quite rare because of disposable needles, but it was a common cause of painful injections. This can occur today with multiple injections. In practice, a single needle should be changed after three or four uses on the same person. Under no circumstances should needles ever be shared between patients.
• Technique for administering anesthetics. Some tissues need to be stretched to make the injection comfortable. Applying pressure on some areas can block out feelings of pain. This is true is areas such as the palate where painless injections are very difficult to do.
• Rapid administration of the anesthetic. The most common cause of injection pain is that some dentists administer the anesthetic too quickly. These rapid injections can tear the tissue, resulting in immediate pain, which then results in soreness.

While it is impossible to guarantee that each and every injection will be painless, the level of pain can be reduced by making sure that the topical anesthetic is left on for long enough for it to work properly, by injecting the anesthetic very slowly, and by applying pressure for certain types of injections.

The best way to find a dentist who gives comfortable injections is by asking for recommendations. It’s also a good idea to ask your potential dentist outright if he or she is capable of giving painless injections and if they apply numbing gel.

Some dental office also uses a device called the Wand which guarantees painless injections, because the speed of the delivery of the anesthetic is computer-controlled. The device, which doesn’t look like a syringe, has been touted to work wonders with needle phobics.

A number of psychological approaches and techniques have also helped other people cope. These include hypnosis, systematic desensitization, deep breathing, visualization and guided imagery, positive affirmations, and reward systems. There are some therapists specializing in phobias and anxiety disorders who work in tandem with phobic-friendly dentists.

For some needle phobics, there is the option of intravenous sedation where nitrous oxide is used to relax the patient enough to tolerate the venflon. The area where the venflon is put is first numbed with EMLA cream or Ametop.

Remember, there is no reason for you to avoid going to the dentist. There are many ways that you can deal with your dental phobia. Most importantly, find a dentist who understands your fear and knows how to handle patients who are scared of dental procedures.

Reduce or overcome your fear of needles

Dental Phobia – A Guided Meditation for Dental Fear and Anxiety is an audio download that can help you reduce and even overcome your fear of needles and dentistry. This audio download can help condition your mind for your upcoming dental visit and procedure. If you follow the guidelines as directed by Dr. DeMarco, you will be better prepared, more relaxed and you will be surprised at how well you recover when you take fear and anxiety out of the procedure.

You don’t have to be scared to visit the dentist. Visit our website, read our blog articles about Fear and Anxiety and sample our wonderful audio product, “Dental Phobia  – A Guided Meditation for dental fear and anxiety.”

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