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Pain Experienced by Patients During Periodontal Recall Examination Using Thinner Versus Thicker Probes
Author(s) -
Hassan Mohamed A.,
Bogle Gary,
Quishenbery Mary,
Stephens Denise,
Riggs Matt,
Egelberg Jan
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
journal of periodontology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.036
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1943-3670
pISSN - 0022-3492
DOI - 10.1902/jop.2005.76.6.980
Subject(s) - visual analogue scale , quadrant (abdomen) , medicine , quartile , dentistry , recall , physical therapy , surgery , psychology , confidence interval , cognitive psychology
Background: The aim of the present study, performed during periodontal recall visits, was to compare the levels of pain experienced by patients during periodontal probing using probes with tip diameters of either 0.40 mm or 0.63 mm. Methods: Three groups of 20 adult patients were examined by three different therapists. Diagonal maxillary/mandibular quadrants were probed with a 0.40 mm and a 0.63 mm probe, respectively. At the completion of probing of each quadrant, the patients were asked to describe their pain using a visual analog scale (VAS). Results: Most patients showed low VAS pain scores for both probes. However, using an arbitrary threshold of VAS ≥40 mm to indicate significant pain, some patients had a painful experience. Lower median pain responses following probing with the 0.63 mm probe compared to the 0.40 mm probe were observed for patients of therapist 1, and for the quartile of all 60 patients that showed the highest VAS scores. For therapist 2 and 3 groups, no differences were found. The pain levels expressed by the three groups of patients varied, confirming results of our previous studies, which also observed differences in patients' pain experiences following probing by different therapists. Conclusions: The ability to deliver dental care with a minimum of patient discomfort would seem to be an essential part of the skills of individual clinicians. We would like to suggest that dental therapists periodically evaluate this part of their skill by asking patients to express their pain experiences following various procedures using VAS scales. J Periodontol 2005;76:980‐984 .