PSYCHOPATHOLOGY AND PSYCHIATRIC-DIAGNOSIS IN SUBJECTS WITH DENTAL PHOBIA

To determine the diagnostic and psychopathologic characteristics of su bjects with dental phobia, 73 subjects with dental phobia were systema tically assessed using structured clinical interviews and multiple rat ing scales already validated as measures of dental phobia. Forty perce nt of the sample had a current Axis I diagnosis other than simple phob ia, mostly anxiety (20%) or mood (16%) disorder. This subgroup had mor e Axis II diagnoses, functional impairment, generalized phobic avoidan ce, and somatization tendencies, higher harm avoidance scores on the T PQ, and more dental fear. Subgroupings based on the presence of an Axi s II diagnosis, a life-time Axis I diagnosis, multiple phobias, and ty pe of dental fear yielded far fewer differences on the above diagnosti c and psychometric measures. It remains to be seen whether using both DSM-III-R diagnoses and already validated dental fear classification s chemes will improve treatment planning and outcome for these patients.