Do our patients understand us? A review of patients’ comprehension of terminology commonly used in oral surgery and oral medicine clinics

Introduction: Effective communication between clinician and patient is known to increase patient satisfaction and improve health outcomes. This can often be difficult to achieve. Patient’s understanding of clinical terms can sometimes be limited and overestimated by clinicians. This may result in misunderstanding, increased anxiety and in some cases ill-informed decision making.
Aim: To evaluate patient’s understanding of terminology commonly used in Oral Surgery and Oral Medicine Clinics. To consider the impact of the patient’s education on their level of understanding of clinical language.
Objectives: To develop a questionnaire to assess patient’s understanding of common clinical terms.
Method: Questionnaires were distributed to patients attending oral surgery and oral medicine outpatient clinics in July 2018.
Results: One hundred and one questionnaires were completed. Radiograph (81.63%), local anaesthetic (72.45%) and biopsy (72.44%) were familiar to patients. The least understood terms included; surgical extraction (29.47%), polyp (37%) and cyst (44.44%). We investigated the relationship between gender, education level and correct response rate. This showed women had a higher percentage of correct answers compared to men in almost all terms investigated. Similarly, those with a university level education had a higher percentage of correct responses compared to those without.
Conclusion: Patients often struggle to fully understand dental terms used by clinicians. It is important to recognise that even terms familiar to patients may not be well understood and may require further explanation. It is imperative that all dental professionals modify their language appropriately during consultations. This will facilitate patient education specifically regarding their condition and management. It is hoped this will decrease anxiety and enable patients to make better decisions about their health.

Conflict of interests: Non identified.