Oral health literacy and dental anxiety: A study among dental patients in Malaysia

AIM . The study’s objective was to assess the levels of oral health literacy (OHL) and dental anxiety (DA) among patients and to examine any potential correlation between OHL and DA. MATERIALS AND METHODS . This study is a cross-sectional analysis of 97 dental patients at AIMST Dental Centre in Malaysia. Oral Health Literacy (OHL) was assessed with the Oral Health Literacy Instrument (OHLI), while Dental Anxiety (DA) was evaluated by the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale (MDAS) questionnaire. RESULTS . A significant proportion (70.1%) of participants exhibited sufficient oral health literacy, although moderate levels of anxiety were observed in 39.8% of individuals as measured by the MDAS. OHL exhibited a strong correlation with age (p = 0.031) and education (p < 0.001), while DA showed no significant association with any sociodemographic parameters. Ultimately, OHL had a substantial correlation with the MDAS (p = 0.004). CONCLUSIONS . Our study revealed a substantial correlation between oral health literacy (OHL) and dental anxiety (DA) among participants, indicating a necessity for oral health education to enhance OHL and therefore improve oral health outcomes, perhaps mitigating their DA.