KNOWLEDGE, AWARENESS, AND PREVALENCE OF ANTHOPHOBIA AMONG UNDERGRADUATE DENTAL STUDENTS- A QUESTIONNAIRE STUDY

Abstract

Introduction: A persistent, intense fear of flowers is called anthophobia. It is characterized by sweaty palms, panic attacks, and racing heartbeats. It can be treated by CBT and exposure therapy coupled with medications and willpower.

Aim: To evaluate the level of anthophobia amongst dental ug students and to understand the level of fear for flowers among dental ug students.

Materials and Methods: A questionnaire having 15 survey questions was circulated to 100 dental undergraduate students in Saveetha Dental College through google forms and the responses were tabulated in Microsoft Excel and statistically analyzed by SPSS version 27 using Chi-square test. Pie charts for descriptive data and Bar graphs were plotted for correlation.

Results: 61.3% of the respondents were males and 38.7% of them were females. 83.8% of the respondents were 1st-year students, 7.2% were 2nd-year students and 6.3% of them were 3rd-year students. 88.89% of the respondents are not comfortable with flowers around them. 8.33 % have felt nauseous in the presence of flowers at some point in their lives. 52.3% of the respondents think CBT can help treat this phobia and 54.1% of them are ready to seek professional help if they’re diagnosed with Anthophobia. 55% of the respondents think anthophobia is a genetic disorder.

Conclusion: From this study, we have concluded that none of the dental UnderGraduate students in Saveetha Dental College are Anthophobic. This study evaluated the level of anthophobia amongst dental ug students and helped to understand the level of fear for flowers among dental Undergraduate students.