Current Complaint
Current complaint is one of the most important parts of the dental anamnesis and represents one of the most important factors in making a diagnosis.
Dental anamnesis
What is the nature of your current dental health and needs?
Please describe in detail, in your own words, what is the nature of your current dental health and needs. For example, describe any difficulty related to teeth, gums, jaws, temporomandibular joints, oral mucosa or any area in your mouth, and when it first appeared.
Multiple choice:
🔘 Regular check-up
🔘 I feel pain
Please, describe
Short text
🔘 I have a lesion on the soft tissue
Please, describe
Short text
🔘 Something else
Please, describe
Short text
Do your gums bleed when you brush or floss?
Bleeding gums when brushing and flossing may indicate underlying gingival disease or the wrong tooth brushing technique.
This information, in addition to the intraoral findings, may help in making the diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Are your teeth sensitive to cold, hot, sweets or pressure?
The sensitivity of the teeth to pressure, cold, warm and sweet stimuli can indicate the presence of dental caries, pulp disease as well as dentine hypersensitivity.
This information, in addition to clinical findings and diagnostic tests, help in making the diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Is your mouth dry?
Dry mouth can be caused by various factors: dehydration, the use of aggressive oral hygiene products or the use of certain medications and treatments. Also, dry mouth occurs in a number of different systemic diseases.
Information on the presence of dry mouth in addition to medical history and intaoral findings is of great importance for diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Do you have earaches or neck pain?
Ear and neck pain can be caused by various dental diseases, such as pulpal diseases, dental abscess, bruxism and temporomandibular joint disorders.
Information about ear and neck pain, in addition to the clinical findings, can help in making the diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Do you have clicking, popping or discomfort in the jaw?
Clicking, popping and discomfort in the jaws can be caused by various factors and diseases such as: infection, bad habits, trauma, malocclusion and temporomandibular joint disorders. Sometimes, the cause of clicking or discomfort in the jaws can be a symptom of an underlying systemic disease such as arthritis.
Information on these phenomena in addition to medical history and intraoral findings can help in making a diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Do you brux or grind your teeth?
Teeth bruxing and grinding is usually caused by stress and anxiety. If teeth bruxing and grinding occurs in a regular pattern, and lasts for a long period of time, it can lead to various problems and changes such as: clicking of the jaws, pain in the jaws and temporomandibular joint, sensitivity of the teeth to percussion, as well as various forms of tooth wear.
Information on teeth bruxing and grinding in addition to intraoral findings and other symptoms, can help in making a diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Do you often have sores or ulcers in your mouth?
Mouth sores and ulcers can be caused by various factors such as trauma, hormonal changes and viral infections. Frequent occurrence of these changes may be part of some systemic diseases and may be a sign of a weakened immune system.
Information on the frequency of their occurrence in addition to intraoral findings is of great diagnostic value.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
Soft tissue lesions assessment
How long has the lesion been present?
Establisihing the duration of the lesion provides valuable insight into its nature.
For instance, a lesion that has been present for a long period of time might be congenital and it is more likely benign, whereas more rapidly developing lesions are considered more serious.
Short text
Has the lesion changed in size since you first noticed it?
A change in size of a lesion is very important information.
By combining information on the growth rate with findings regarding the duration of presence, a more accurate assesment of the nature of the lesion is possible.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Is there any symptoms associated with the lesion?
Information about the presence of symptoms associated with the lesion such as pain, altered function, numbness, abnormal taste, difficulty swallowing or swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck is very important for making a diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Has the lesion changed in character or features since you first noticed it?
For example, an ulceration started as a vesicle or a lump became an ulcer. Changes in the physical characteristics of a lesion can often assist in the diagnosis.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Are there any associated systemic symptoms?
Information on the presence of systemic symptoms associated with the lesion such as fever, malaise, and nausea is of great diagnostic value because some of these symptoms indicate a possible association of the lesion with certain systemic diseases or conditions.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Is there any historical event associated with the onset of the lesion?
Information about an event associated with the onset of a lesion such as trauma, recent dental treatment, exposure to allergens or toxins, or a visit to a foreign country is of great diagnostic value because it may indicate the cause of the lesion.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Pain assessment
Where the pain is located?
Information about the location of pain such as a tooth, gum or jaw is important because it helps determine the cause of the pain.
Short text
When the pain started?
Information about the time when the pain started helps determine the nature and course of the disease.
A long, continued pain indicates chronic nature of the disease, whereas a recent onsent of pain indicates acute nature of the disease.
Short text
How the pain started?
Information on how the pain started in combination with the time of onset helps determine the nature and course of the disease.
Acute diseases are characterized by a sudden onset of symptoms, in contrast to chronic diseases, which are characterized by symptoms that appear gradually.
Single choice:
🔘 Gradually
🔘 Suddenly
Which one of the following describes best the nature of the pain?
Pain may occur continously or can be intermittent, with periods with no symptoms in between. Continuous pain indicate an acute problem or reactivation of the chronic disease, while intermittent pain indicates disease with more chronic nature.
Single choice:
🔘 Intermittent
🔘 Constant
Please select which one of the following describes best the type of pain:
Information about the type of pain is diagnostically important because it can help determine the cause of the pain, since different diseases have different patterns of pain.
Single choice:
🔘 Sharp
🔘 Dull
🔘 Gripping
🔘 Burning
🔘 Stabbing
🔘 Shooting
Does the pain spread anywhere (e.g. to the ear, jaw, nose, neck, etc.)?
Information about the spreading of the pain from the original place to other structures, helps to determine the cause and severity of the disease.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Does the pain vary in intensity during the day?
Information on variations in pain in terms of pain intensity during the day helps to determine the origin of pain, and therefore its cause.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Does the pain change when changing body position?
Information about changing pain when changing body position, such as lying down, bending down abruptly, or walking down the stairs, may indicate the origin of the pain.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Is there any aggravating (worsening ) factors?
Factors that aggravate pain may be specific to certain dental diseases and for this reason are diagnostically important. For example, the pain of cracked tooth syndrome occurs when the patient relieves the occlusal pressure over the tooth.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Is there any relieving factors?
Factors which reduce the severity or frequency of pain are considered important in diagnosis. For example, in some cases, pain of chronic pulpitis gets relieved by cold application.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
Is there any associated symptoms ?
Pain may occur along with nausea, vomiting, sweating, flushing and increase in pulse rate. The presence of these symptoms indicates the severity of the disease and its acute nature.
Single choice:
🔘 Yes
🔘 No
🔘 Don't know
If yes, please explain:
Short text
How would you rate the severity of the pain on the scale of 1-10 ( 1 - the least painful; 10 - the most painful)?
The perception of pain varies in different individuals. The scale often helps to quantify how much pain the patient is actually having. The severity of pain gives an impression of the acuteness of the symptoms felt by the patient, thus helping in making a proper diagnosis.
Number (1-10)