Siddharth Gautam, Sushama R. Galgali , Ashank Mishra

ABSTRACT

Background:Numerous studies have explored periodontal therapy in terms of success and failures. However, the perceptions of patients towards periodontal therapy have not been extensively studied and are not well understood. Thus, this descriptive study investigates patients experience and satisfaction through use of pretested questionnaire. It also assessed patients’ motivation and awareness towards the general oral hygiene. Materials & methodology:This survey was conducted in 4 different dental colleges in Bangluru, Karnataka from April 2014 to January 2015. One hundred patients who underwent any form of surgical periodontal therapy were included in the survey. They were given the questionnaire 1-week post operatively. Later, all the responses were tabulated and subjected to statistical analysis. Results:The results showed average awareness (56%) regarding dental health among patients. However, once they underwent treatment, they were highly motivated (85%) about both these objectives. Around one-third patients (30%) experienced heavy morbidity 1 week post operatively. Majority of the patients (41%) were comfortable with local anesthesia administration but felt uncomfortable with the duration of anesthesia (47%). When comparing non-surgical periodontal therapy with surgical periodontal therapy the non surgical group showed higher level of satisfaction (90% vs. 47%). Also, the pain experienced was more for surgical group (61% vs. 35%). Conclusion:Although patient perceptions and preferences may influence the treatment decision making, there has been limited research in this field. This short survey was an attempt to look into this perspective and take the results into consideration while practicing.