Perception and misconceptions of patients about dental scaling treatment: A cross-sectional study

Background: People postpone periodontal treatment due to a fear of pain, misconceptions, or traumatic events in the past. The study aimed to determine patients' perceptions and misconceptions about dental scaling treatment. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted using a questionnaire developed and validated by the authors from January 2022 to October 2022 on 310 participants who reported to the periodontology departments of private and public dental institutes. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS. The chi-square test was used to compare categorical variables. P values less than or equal to 0.05 were taken as significant. Results: More than half of the participants had incorrect ideas about the purpose and frequency of dental scaling. A total of 24.2% (n = 75) of the respondents believed it was a harmful procedure, and almost half (n = 147, 47.4%) had received this knowledge from their relatives and 30.6% from observation (n = 95). Many who had been to the dentist previously think of scaling as harmful. Of the participants, 28.1% (n = 87) believed that bleeding during brushing is normal, and 38.4% (n = 119) thought that medicated toothpaste alone solves gingival problems. Conclusion: Most participants were unaware of the purpose, benefits, and frequency of dental scaling and considered it a harmful procedure. Those who had been to the dentist had more misconceptions. The primary sources of misinformation were personal experience and relatives or friends. Lack of communication and patient education about the transient outcomes of dental scaling were the primary factors that led to these myths and misconceptions.