Frequency of neck pain among dentists
Keywords:
Neck disability index, neck pain, numeric rating scaleAbstract
Introduction: The majority of working dentists have musculo - skeletal symptoms in the neck. Bad working habits, repetitive tasks and uncomfortable posture have contribution in the development of neck pain. The aim of this study was to find the frequency of neck pain among dentists.
Material and Methods: A cross sectional survey was carried out by convenience sampling in 3 different dental hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan. The duration of study was 6 months. Total 312 questionnaires were filled by dentists, in which 111 were males and 201 were females. The data was collected using a questionnaire focusing on socio-demographic data, symptoms of neck pain and by directly observing the posture and range of motion of neck and thoracic region. Numeric rating scale and neck disability index were used. Qualitative variables were represented as percentages and bar charts. Descriptive statistics that is mean and standard deviation were used to represent the total score.
Results: Neck pain was the most common complaint. 23.7% subjects had mild pain, 28.2% had moderate pain that was episodic, 10.6% had moderate pain, 3.2% had severe episodic pain and 1% reported severe pain.
Conclusions: Results indicated that the frequency of neck pain and neck disability in dentists seemed to be high and is an area that needs further deliberation.