The attitude regarding dental pain among a group of Romanian adults

Abstract

Dental pain is a common symptom for oral conditions and most frequently caused by the dental disease. The aim of the present study was the assessment of Romanian adult patients’ attitude toward dental pain. Material and method: the cross-sectional study was conducted in 2022-2023 on a sample of 200 adults using an on-line self-administered questionnaire. Results showed that 32.2% of the participants experienced dental pain at least 1 time/year, and the most frequent approaches were scheduling a dental visit (67.5%) and self-medication (42.5%). Only 29% visited the dental office as soon as the pain was felt and the main reason for postponing was the costs of the dental treatments. Analgesics were the preferred medicine for pain management (74%), most frequently ibuprofen (59.5%). Conclusion: Participants in the present showed a suboptimal attitude toward dental pain, tending to postpone the dental visits to address the condition and self-medication with analgesics was largely observed.