Cumulative trauma disorders, overweight and obesity among Brazilian dentists

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to assess the prevalence of cumulative trauma disorders (CTD), overweight and obesity and the association between them, among public health dentists. Methods: The study included 150 dentists working at various public health system units in Recife, PE, Brazil. A Brazilian version of the Nordic Musculoskeletal Symptoms Questionnaire was used. Obesity and overweight were observed across the BMI (body mass index) recommended by the World Health Organization. A descriptive analysis was carried out using SPSS 13.0 software. Results: Among respondents, 79.3% were female with a mean age of 44.42 years. The presence of musculoskeletal symptoms was reported by 138 (92%) of participants, 129 of whom linked the symptoms to their work activity. The cervical region was the most involved, accounting for 104(14.3%) of the total 723 affected areas. Overweight was observed in 32% of the professionals and obesity in 13%. Of the 150 participants, 30 (20%) received a medical diagnosis of CTD and of these, 13 (43.3%) had a high BMI. The 40-49-year-old age group was most affected by CTDand females were more affected than males, accounting for 22.7% of professionals interviewed. There was no significant association between the presence of CTD and overweight/obesity (p>0.05). Conclusions: However, given the multifactorial nature of occupational diseases, it is likely that overweight and obesity may act as a predisposing factor in these diseases, interacting and enhancing the effects of other important risk factors for the occurrence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders.