Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Pain among Dentists in Shiraz, SouthernIran

Background: Occupational diseases are worldwide. Some dentists believe that they areat a higher risk for development of some musculoskeletal disorders for the postures theyshould have during work.Objective: To determine the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain and their associated occupationalfactors among dentists from Shiraz, southern Iran.Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 90 dentists of 375 members of Fars Dental Associationwere selected at random and asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire. Thequestions were about personal characteristics, job history, some work characteristics mostlypertaining to dentistry including physical risk factors at work plus any report about the occurrenceof low back pain (LBP) and neck pain.Results: Of the 90 questionnaires distributed, 82 (91%) were completed and returnedfor analyses. Of 82 studied dentists, 42 (51%) were female (mean±SD age of 36±6.6 yrs)and 40 (49%) were male (mean±SD age of 39.4±8.7 yrs). 27 (33%; 95% CI: 23%–43%)dentists had LBP; 23 (28%; 95% CI: 18%–38%) had neck pain; and 10 (12%; 95% CI:5%–19%) had both. Of these 60 dentists who had pain, 27 (45%; 95% CI: 32%–58%) hadradicular pain and 28 (47%; 95% CI: 34%–59%) felt numbness and/or paresthesia in theirlimbs. 33 (55%; 95% CI: 42%–68%) of 60 dentists with musculoskeletal complaint couldnot identify any factors for their pain. The prevalence of neither LBP nor neck pain weresignificantly different between men and women. The place of work and the prevalence ofcomplaint of musculoskeletal pain were also not significantly correlated. None of the studiedwork-related risk factors had a significant association with the complaint of musculoskeletalpain.Conclusion: Although the prevalence of LBP and neck pain is high among dentists, wecould not find any correlation between the studied work-related risk factors and musculoskeletaldisorders. We concluded that dentistry, per se, is probably not an initial factor fordevelopment of neither LBP nor neck pain, but it could accentuate the symptoms.