Musculoskeletal disorders in Hong Kong dental students

Abstract

Introduction: Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) not only hinder a dental student’s career trajectory, but also pose challenges to their physical and mental health. This project aimed to investigate the prevalence of dental related MSD (DR-MSD) among dental students in the University of Hong Kong (HKU); identify its common contributing factors; assess students’ familiarity with ergonomic guidelines; as well as provide practical recommendations for coping with and preventing DR-MSD based on the expertise of physiotherapists. Methods: Dental students from Years 3 to 6 studying at HKU were invited to participate in an online questionnaire survey. Interested students were also invited to attend a seminar on ways to prevent and cope with MSD and they completed an evaluation form afterwards. Chi-square and Chi-square exact tests were performed to relate the respondents’ experiences of persistent pain and pain intensity with their background, clinical practices, specific dental treatments, operation setups and equipment, and their adherence to ergonomic principles. Results and discussions: 95.0% of respondents reported experiencing some form of MSD. Neck pain was the most prevalent (78.8%), then the shoulders (52.5%), and lower back (51.2%). There was a significant increase in pain intensity with increasing clinical sessions (p = 0.033) and clinical year (p = 0.029). There was also a significant increase in the prevalence of shoulder (p = 0.009) and neck pain (p = 0.037) with increasing years of study. Females were more likely to experience hand / wrist pain (p = 0.016). More frequent chair adjustment was associated with higher prevalence of neck pain (p = 0.029). Failure to adhere to ergonomic postures was associated with neck, shoulder, and lower back pain. Generally, dental students were not familiar with FDI World Dental Federation ergonomic principles and were not taught about it either. Conclusions: A high prevalence of MSD among HKU dental students and significant associations with their clinical training, practices, and adherence to ergonomic principles were identified. A knowledge-action gap was identified among students concerning ergonomic principles. To prevent DR-MSD, it is recommended that the dental curriculum should regularly disseminate ergonomic knowledge, such as seminars by physiotherapists that focus on proper posture, equipment adjustment, and pain-relief measures.