# Aided and Unaided Decision-Making Among Partial Denture-Seeking Prosthodontic Patients Utilizing the Decisional Conflict Scale at the Dental Clinics of a College in Riyadh: A Questionnaire Study

## TL;DR

This study examines how age and decision aids affect decision-making in patients seeking partial dentures.

## Contribution

The study introduces a new application of the DCS to assess decisional conflict in prosthodontic patients.

## Key findings

- Aided patients had lower DCS scores compared to unaided patients.
- Younger patients felt less sure about their treatment decisions than older patients.
- Age was significantly associated with uncertainty in decision-making.

## Abstract

Background

The Decisional Conflict Scale (DCS) evaluates the decisional conflict patients experience during their healthcare-related decision-making process. There are various versions of the DCS, of which DCS-16 was originally recommended and put to use. It analyzes the patient treatment choice process on five subscales, hence, the study aimed to assess the influence of patient decision-making aid (PDA) on patients seeking prosthodontic care for partial dentures through the DCS.

Methods

All patients were randomly allocated into aided and unaided consultation groups, and patients seeking partial denture services were recruited from the college outpatient.

Results

The mean DCS score for the aided and unaided groups was 8 (±6.4) and 20.6 (±15.9), respectively. The age of the patient was significantly associated with the response to a question in the uncertainty sub-scale. In the aided category, the younger age group (20-40 years) was significantly (p = 0.00) less likely to feel sure about their decision on treatment options compared to the elderly age group (41-60 years) (OR: -17.8, CI: 1.47-2.28).

Conclusion

The present study revealed a significant association between decision-making among partial denture-seeking patients and their age, along with a substantial difference in decisional conflict between patients counseled using a standardized aid and unaided patients.