Development and Validation of an Oral Health Values Scale

Oral health values, the degree to which one demonstrates investment in improving or maintaining one\u27s dental status, are believed to vary across individuals. Oral health values may contribute to dental treatment utilization. By assessing differences in oral health values, researchers may be better able to explain differences in dental care treatment-seeking patterns. There is limited research, however, on measuring and evaluating oral health values. This study developed and validated a new Oral Health Values Scale (OHVS) that may be used in future research efforts to understand psychosocial barriers to treatment. The study provided evidence of content validity by having experts review item content related to relevance, representativeness, specificity, and clarity to the construct oral health values. Data from a developmental sample was used to further refine item content. The scale exhibited a four factor structure with high internal consistency. The psychometric properties of the final scale were confirmed in a second sample, although evidence for the OHVS\u27s four factor structure was mixed. Overall, the OHVS was consistently related to other oral health constructs in anticipated ways, providing evidence for convergent validity

Periodontal Status and Quality of Life: Impact of Fear of Pain and Dental Fear

Background. Oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) is impacted by periodontal disease and orofacial pain. There is a limited research examining the impact of avoidance of care or physiological arousal related to the fear of pain response on periodontal-related OHRQoL. Methods. Data are from the Center for Oral Health Research in Appalachia family-based study focusing on 1,339 adults. Measures included a modified Periodontal Screening and Recording Index across sextants of dentition, dental fear survey, Fear of Pain Questionnaire-9, and Oral Health Impact Profile-14. Structural equation modeling was used to estimate the effects of periodontal disease screening indicators on OHRQoL including the mediating role of dental fear while accounting for fear of pain. Results. A significant total effect was found for the mandibular anterior sextant, components of dental anxiety/fear, and indicators of OHRQoL (pain and discomfort, , ; psychosocial impact, , ). The maxillary anterior region was significantly associated with pain discomfort (, ) and functionality (, ). Conclusions. Findings provide a granular perspective of periodontal disease indicators and OHRQoL. Dental avoidance/anticipatory fear and physiological arousal mediate OHRQoL in individuals who have indicators of periodontal disease in sextants that may be visible and susceptible to higher pain and psychosocial impact

A Common Place, Volume 2, Spring 2023

Editor in Chief: Emily Steffenhagen Editorial Assistant: Chloe Johnson Prose Editor: Jake Robinson Poetry Editor: Kyla Brown Art Editor: Elliott Jimerson Web Editor: Elle Degaetano Design: Kate Frey Readers: Dalton Whitby, Kylie Wheeler, Sierra Sweezy, Myeisha Hamiltonhttps://digitalcommons.longwood.edu/special_studentpubs/1217/thumbnail.jp

Does a brief mindfulness induction change delay discounting in individuals with high levels of obsessive-compulsive symptoms?

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a mental illness characterized by obsessions and compulsions that cause significant distress and/or functional impairment. Delay discounting, the decline in value of a reward with the delay of its receipt, is linked to a range of maladaptive behaviors and mental disorders. Increased delay discounting is related to obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), reflecting that compulsive behaviors that aim to counteract obsessive thoughts are viewed as uncontrollable by the sufferer. We aimed to experimentally reduce delay discounting in individuals with high levels of obsessive-compulsive symptoms through a brief mindfulness induction. Eligible participants were randomly assigned to receive either a mindfulness or thought wandering induction before completing counter-balanced monetary and handwashing delay discounting tasks and questionnaires. In Study 1, participants were adults (N = 84) who completed the study in-person pre-pandemic response from November 2019 through March 2020 in the US. In Study 2, adult participants (N = 79) completed the study online due to the pandemic from June to November 2020. The mindfulness condition did not exhibit increased state mindfulness in either sample. There were no differences in delay discounting between participants who received the mindfulness condition and those who completed the thought wandering condition in either sample. There was an order effect for the first sample such that participants who completed the handwashing delay discounting task first had increased delay discounting/more impulsive choices on that measure. We found significant relations between this handwashing delay discounting task and related obsessive-compulsive symptoms. Monetary delay discounting was not associated with OCD symptoms. Findings suggest that presentation of threat-relevant information may lead to steeper discounting. Additionally, our results provide further evidence for differential delay discounting across reward types. Our study highlights the need for threat-relevant and/or symptom specific tasks in future studies examining delay discounting in OCD

Preventing Postpartum Anxiety and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Over the Internet: An Open-Trial Pilot Study

•Anxiety disorders are the most common postpartum psychiatric conditions.•In this open-trial pilot study, we evaluate a prevention program for postpartum anxiety.•Findings reveal the program is acceptable and feasible.•Participants experienced improvements in postpartum anxiety risk factors. Anxiety disorders are the most common postpartum psychiatric conditions, yet limited research exists on the prevention of postpartum anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Postpartum anxiety leads to significant problems in both mother and child, such as maternal depression, difficulty breastfeeding, interference with parent-infant bonding, and childhood anxiety. In the current study, we tested the feasibility, acceptability, and initial efficacy of an Internet-delivered postpartum anxiety and OCD prevention program, “Preventing Postpartum Onset Distress” (P-POD), in a sample of 15 pregnant women in their third trimester. Geared toward at-risk pregnant people, P-POD includes seven 30-minute educational, interactive modules that teach skills derived from cognitive-behavioral treatment for anxiety and OCD. P-POD also includes three additional modules for partners, with strategies for supporting their partners. Findings suggest that P-POD is acceptable and feasible. Participants experienced reductions in postpartum anxiety risk factors. However, this was a small, open-trial pilot study with a relatively homogeneous sample. Future research should compare P-POD to an active control condition, use more diverse samples, include qualitative interviews, and assess symptoms postpartum