你有“看牙恐懼癥”嗎？

你是否一聽到鉆牙的聲音就開始莫名地害怕？你是否一看到打麻藥的針頭就開始頭皮發麻？你是否一躺倒牙椅上就開始不自主血壓飆升？甚至，你一想到要看牙就恨不得一溜煙逃跑，你可能真的有牙科恐懼癥。

Dental fear is the fear of dentistry and of receiving dental care. It is estimated that as many as 75% of US adults experience some degree of dental fear, from mild to severe.
“看牙恐懼癥”指的是對牙科及接受牙科治療的恐懼。據估計，美國成年人中有75%有不同程度的看牙恐懼癥，有的程度較輕，有的則很嚴重。

Many dentally fearful people will only seek dental care when they have a dental emergency, such as a toothache or dental abscess.
很多有看牙恐懼癥的人只有在遇到牙科急癥時才會去看牙，比如牙痛或者牙膿腫。

People who are very fearful of dental care often experience a "cycle of avoidance," in which they avoid dental care due to fear until they experience a dental emergency requiring invasive treatment, which can reinforce their fear of dentistry.
非常害怕看牙的人常會經歷“逃避循環”，他們由于恐懼而逃避看牙，直到他們遇到牙科急癥，而這又需要進行侵入性治療，這種治療又會加重他們的恐懼。

Women tend to report more dental fear than men, and younger people tend to report being more dentally fearful than older individuals.
女性比男性更害怕看牙，年輕人比老年人更害怕看牙。

People tend to report being more fearful of more invasive procedures, such as oral surgery, than they are of less invasive treatment, such as professional dental cleanings, or prophylaxis.
據報道，人們更害怕侵入性治療，比如口腔外科，而對微創治療則沒有那么擔心，比如專業洗牙或牙科預防。

（中國日報網英語點津 yaning）