Abstract
Patients reporting halitosis are generally classified into those with objective halitosis and those subjective halitosis. Subjective halitosis patients were further divided into those with psychosomatic halitosis and those with neurotic halitosis. Applying these categorization requires that we know the history of patient anxiety. We analyze patient anxiety using a questionnaire distributed to 750 patients. The ratio of women to men was 2.22. Age distribution was highest among those in their 20s and 30s. The duration of halitosis-induced anxiety was 9.08 years, and one-third of patients have noticed it from an early teen age. The percentage of halitosis noted by others was 63.6%, noted by the subjects themselves 33.5%, and noted by the response of others' 33.7%. Frequently, the spouse noted bad breath followed by the child. Results showed that the number of subjects whose had halitosis was indicated by a spouse was 172, by a child 135, and by a friend 111. Patients noting halitosis in the morning numbered 368, all day long 253, when hungry 188, at work 156, and when tired 140.
The questionnaire also indicated that 33.1% of patients had no one tell them about their halitosis.
The questionnaire indicated the importance of patient anxiety. It is difficult to determine which criteria may apply at first, but questionnaire helped pinpoint the psychological trend.
