Dentist Finder San Diego

New research published in this month’s Journal of American Dental Association found people with red hair are more likely to have painful experiences at the dentist. Red heads were found to be twice as likely to avoid dental care compared to people with dark hair. Other studies have indicated that redheads may be more sensitive to pain and may need more anesthetics to numb them.

One of the authors, Dr. Daniel Sessler says, “Redheads require more generalized anesthesia, localized anesthesia. The conventional doses fail. They have bad experiences at the dentist and because of the bad experiences, they could avoid dental care.”

The best tip for dentists is to evaluate new patients for dental anxiety, and ask them about previous experiences.

Journal of American Dental Association

Binkley et al. J Am Dent Assoc. 2009; 140: 896-905