INTRODUCTION: Fear and anxiety are common in patients who require odontological treatment. During surgical procedures, anxiety can become a complicating factor from the moment in which the change of patient’s vital signs can generate emergency situations. OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the degree of preoperative anxiety of patients submitted to oral surgery, to identify which surgical procedure causes more anxiety in patients and also which surgical moment is causing greater anxiety. MATERIAL AND METHOD: 200 patients were selected for oral surgery at the clinics of the Department of Dentistry, Federal University of Sergipe. On the day of surgery, patients answered the EAD scale and their heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP) were evaluated. These data served as baseline of the physical parameters used in the evaluation of preoperative anxiety. RESULT: Statistically, there were no significant differences (Kruskal-Wallis test, p=0.6933) between treatments regarding anxiety. The Spearman correlation (rS) between the values obtained for anxiety, blood pressure levels and heart rate showed a weak correlation (rs <0.2), although significant (p<0.05) between the results. The anesthesia was the moment that produced greater anxiety (Kruskal-Wallis test, p<0.05) compared to the other moments. CONCLUSION: Anxiety has a connection with the increase of the heart rate and systolic blood pressure. This fact makes very important its control by the surgeon-dentist meaning to avoid complications through the surgery.
Anxiety; surgery; heart rate; arterial pressure