Patienters beskrivelse af akutte orale smerter i relation til angst
Introduktion – De psykologiske modelopstillinger for smerter og angst har meget tilfælles i deres affektive og kognitive interaktioner, mens de somatiske reaktioner væsentligt er tilknyttet henholdsvis det sensitive og det autonome nervesystem. Formålet med nærværende undersøgelse er derfor at beskrive, hvilke ord (kognitive reaktioner) patienterne bruger til at karakterisere deres akutte tandsmerter og analysere beskrivelsernes relationer til patienternes angstniveau (affektive reaktioner) for at gå til tandlæge. Materiale og metode – Til undersøgelsespopulation blev anvendt patienter, der henvendte sig i Tandlægevagten i København (n = 196), og som analyseredskab blev brugt McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ), der kategoriserer smertebeskrivende ord i henholdsvis: sensoriske, affektive og evaluerende ord. Resultater – Resultatet viste, at blandt samtlige patienter var det hyppigst anvendte ord pinefuld (affektivt ord), mens de følgende fem hyppigst benyttede ord alle var af sensorisk karakter. Blev undersøgelsespopulationen derimod ved hjælp af en Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) inddelt i tre angstniveuaer (0-33, 34-66 og 67-100 mm), brugte laveste niveau kun sensoriske ord blandt de seks hyppigst anvendte ord, mens fordelingen på højeste niveau var fem affektive og et evaluerende ord. Fordelingen af mænd og kvinder på højeste angstniveau var næsten lige, mens der på laveste niveau var dobbelt så mange mænd som kvinder. På mellemste niveau var der dobbelt så mange kvinder som mænd. Der var en tendens til, at patienter med et højt angstniveau i gennemsnit brugte flere beskrivende ord end patienter på lavere niveauer.
Patients’ descriptions of acute oral pain in relation to anxiety. Introduction – The psychological models of pain and anxiety have many similarities in terms of their affective and cognitive interactions, while somatic reactions are strongly linked to the sensitive and autonomic nervous systems. The purpose of this study is therefore to describe the words (cognitive reactions) patients use to characterise acute dental pain, and to analyse the relations between these descriptions and the patients’ anxiety levels (affective responses) about visiting a dentist. Material and methods – The respondents consisted of patients who contacted the Emergency Dental Service in Copenhagen (n: 196). The analysis tool used was the McGill Pain Questionnaire (MPQ), which categorises pain-describing words into sensory, affective and evaluative terms. Results – The results showed that the most frequently used word was “painful” (affective word). The next five most frequently used words were all sensory terms. However, when the group was divided into three levels of anxiety (0-33, 34-66 and 67-100 mm) using a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), the lowest level’s six most frequently used words were all sensory terms, while the spread at the highest level was five affective words and one evaluative. The gender split at the highest anxiety level was almost equal. There were twice as many men as women at the lowest level, while on the middle level, there were twice as many women as men. There was a tendency for patients with high anxiety levels to use more descriptive words than patients on lower levels. Conclusion – The clinical conclusion is that anxious patients tend to emphasise the affective nature of pain over its sensory aspects. An empathic conclusion would be that you should ask about patients’ pain, but listen to their fears.
