Professional burnout and work-related stress are known problems that have been the subject of in-depth examination among dentists. Nevertheless, these issues have not been widely studied among dental assistants. The aims of this study were threefold: to confirm the structure of a Work Stress Inventory (WSI) for Dental Assistants which was originally developed for Jordanian dental assistants (factor analysis); to evaluate work stress and burnout among Israeli dental assistants and to discover the factors predicting Israeli assistants’ burnout (regression analyses). The Maslach Burnout Inventory and the WSI were distributed by mail and in person. Varimax factor analysis revealed that the items which contribute to different aspects of work stress are similar among both Jordanian and Israeli populations. Among the 299 Israeli dental assistants who completed the questionnaires, the most stressful work-related factors were income, workload, and work hazards. Eighteen percent of the participants exhibited a high to very high level of burnout. Participants exhibited a moderate level of emotional exhaustion (EE), low level of depersonalization (DP), and high level of personal accomplishment (PA). Most WSI factors were found to correlate positively with EE and DP. Linear stepwise regression analyses revealed that the best predictor of EE was the dentist‒assistant relationship, followed by workload, patient type, and salary. The best predictor of DP was patient suffering followed by dentist‒assistant relationship, years of professional experience, and work hazards. Professional stress and burnout among dental assistants are important factors that can possibly affect the wellbeing of both dental personnel and their patients. Further studies are necessary to better understand these factors in addition to the effects of personal relationships on burnout among dentists and their assistants.

Parents play a significant role in the development of dental anxiety in their adolescent children. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the influence of family milieu on adolescents’ dental anxiety. The level of dental anxiety (Dental Anxiety Scale—DAS) was evaluated in 100 adolescent dental patients (ages 13–18 years) and their parents. Parents supplied information about family demographics and their personal experiences of dental treatment. Concomitantly, the family’s behavior was observed during the dental encounter. The adolescents’ mean DAS score was 9.83 ± 2.05. Adolescents’ DAS was higher when their parents’ memories from their own dental encounters were negative. A positive correlation was found between adolescents’ dental anxiety and that of their father (r = 0.52, p < 0.001) and mother (r = 0.79, p < 0.001). The following variables showed a significant ability to predict adolescents’ dental anxiety (stepwise regression): mother’s DAS (B = 0.57), adolescent’s behavior at the dental visit (B = 0.87), being the firstborn child (B = −0.44), father’s DAS (B = 0.13), and mother’s level of education (B = −0.10). The results showed that intra-family relationships and behavior, parents’ education, dental fear, and memories from previous treatments play an important role in defining the level of dental anxiety in their adolescent children.

Myths or misconceptions concerning hypnosis are regarded among the major barriers to effective implementation of hypnosis. Contemporary hypnotherapists are expected to elicit patients’ misconceptions and to provide explanations that distinguish between mystical and scientific perceptions of hypnosis and that offer a picture of the state of the art of hypnosis. Dealing with misconceptions on a rational and cognitive level seems to have the ability to change a patient’s conscious knowledge and understanding of hypnosis. Nevertheless, deeply rooted and emotionally saturated misbeliefs with historical-cultural origins still prevail. This article focuses on the prehypnotic phase of therapy and proposes remythification to deal with the myth of hypnosis. This approach aims to promote the hypnotherapeutic process by utilizing myth-related misconceptions.

Objectives: the aims of this study were the development of a novel questionnaire to assess the impact of prosthetic treatments on oral health-related quality of life (OHRQoL) and the performance of a prospective pilot study. Background: the currently preferred OHRQoL measurement tool is the oral health impact profile-49 (OHIP-49), a self-report questionnaire which mainly focuses on general effects related to oral health. Materials and methods: A total of 24 adult participants (9 females and 15 males) were recruited and asked to complete the novel questionnaire twice: once before the prosthetic treatment began and 4–6 weeks post-treatment. The assessment of the change in OHRQoL was based on the differences in participants’ answers before and after treatment. Data were analyzed using ANOVA with a repeated-measures method and t-tests. The reliability of the questionnaire was tested using Cronbach’s alpha and intraclass coefficient (ICC). Results: The questionnaire was found to be reliable (α ≥ 0.6), with “social disability” having the highest score (α = 0.868). All domains showed an improvement (α < 0.005) in OHRQoL scores after treatment. Conclusions: the novel questionnaire tested in this study was found to be reliable and convenient to use, and demonstrated that prosthetic treatments have a significant positive effect on OHRQoL post-treatment scores.