Common Complaints and Negative Ergonomic Factors in Dental Practice

Abstract

Introduction Dentistry is a profession characterized by numerous occupational negative factors, including biomechanical, ergonomic, and work-related aspects [1,2]. This profession demands precision and imposes high visual requirements due to the work performed within the oral cavity. Consequently, dentists are at a high risk of developing workrelated musculoskeletal disorders [3-5]. Dentists face significant quantitative demands, requiring them to handle as many patients as possible during a workday. The physical work environment often involves uncomfortable postures, prolonged static loads on the neck, shoulders, and upper back muscles [6-9]. Aim To identify the most common complaints and negative ergonomic factors in dentists' work. Methods Ethical approval for the study was obtained from the Biomedical Research Ethics Committee of the LHSU (Approval No. BEC-OF-39). A cross-sectional survey was conducted to evaluate the negative ergonomic factors affecting dentists' working conditions. The study included 148 dentists practicing in Lithuania. Statistical methods were applied using the SPSS 21.0 statistical data analysis . The mean was calculated for quantitative variables, while the frequency and percentage of cases were determined for categorical variables. A significance level of p<0.05 was chosen for hypothesis testing. The relationship between categorical variables was assessed using the chi-square (χ2) test, and the Spearman correlation coefficient (ρ) was calculated for quantitative variables. Results The average age of participants was 37.8 ± 12.5 years, with 97.1% being female. Among the participants, 53.8% rated their physical health positively, 61.4% evaluated their psycho-emotional state positively. There was a strong correlation between physical and psycho-emotional health assessments (ρ=0.577; p<0.001). Fatigue was a common complaint among dentists 90.3%. 87.6% reported back or neck pain, emotional exhaustion 64.1%, leg fatigue 41.4%, eye pain 40.7%. 13% of respondents worked more than 40 hours per week, 53.8% worked 31-40 hours, 20.7% worked 21-30 hours, and 12.4% worked less than 20 hours per week. 56.3% of dentists treated 8 or more patients per day. 24.1% admitted their posture during work was not ergonomic, and 52.4% stated they worked in positions that were most comfortable for them. 31% reported inadequate lighting. 52.4% were affected by noise from dental equipment, 49% used optics, 44.1% worked with toxic substances. On average, participants experienced 4–5 complaints. Conclusions 1. Dentists report numerous health complaints. Over half of the study participants rated their health positively. Common complaints included fatigue and back or neck pain. 2. Dentists mostly suffer from poor workplace lighting, equipment noise, discomfort from protective equipment, toxic substances, failure to follow recommendations for ergonomic body positioning, excessive workload.