Questioning the dentist?


It's completely normal for patients to be curious about what's going on in their mouths while the dentist works. I often explain what I am doing while performing dentistry and most patients like it when I do. Some patients ask questions before, during and after treatment aand generally it is not a problem. Sometimes..... it can interfere with treatment.

Performing dentistry does require concentration and takes a certain amount of mental effort to complete  procedures. It helps when a dentist's mind is clear and not distracted. Some anxious patients deal with their anxiety by asking LOTS of questions. These questions can take many forms but often they reflect the fears of an anxious patient. "Your not taking away too much tooth are you?" "How much longer will this take?" "Will my temporary come out?"  "Did you give me enough anesthesia?" "Do you take continuing education?" "You know I'm a gagger?" "Can I rinse out now?( usually repeated every few minutes of treatment).

Most of the times I take these questions in stride, but sometimes, when they are constant and through out a long procedure, they can interfere with  treatment and a dentists ability to perform dentistry.

On Medical TV shows when a patient who is being treated by a trauma team, the concerned family is always shooed away. In dentistry our concerned patients are awake and can ask questions ad infinitum. In fact when a patient asks a high number of anxiety driven questions it tends to raise the anxiety level of the entire dental team and can actually make the chances of  an untoward event even more likely.

For all of these reasons patients would do best to ask most of their questions before and after their dental procedure and certainly not allow their questions as a means of delaying  a planned treatment. Some anxious patients probably should premedicate with anti anxiety medication or possibly have nitrous oxide administered during their treatment.

from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2018/09/questioning-dentist.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/

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