We care. We protect you. ... and there is a bit of truth in every cliché.

I always make sure that my patients experience the least possible pain…

…however, we saw many dentists suffering from work-related pain. Musculoskeletal disorders in the neck, shoulder and lower back are the most common reason (29.3%) for early retirement and even loss of work in dentists worldwide¹. A review of 34 articles showed a very high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain among dental professionals (25-100%)². They spend more than 41 million dollars annually to be able to continue working³. Due to pain and discomfort, dentists had to reschedule and/or cancel appointments of 1.3 million patients⁴.

If you go to work and treat while in pain, you concentrate more on yourself rather than on your patients who feel this immediately. As a consequence, they might lose trust.

Sources

¹ Burke FJ, Main JR, Freeman R. The practice of dentistry: An assessment of reasons for premature retirement. Br. Dent J 1997 April 12; 182(7): 250

² Kumar SP, Kumar V, Baliga M. Work-related musculoskeletal disorders among dental profissionals: an evidence-based update. Indian J Den Educ. 2012;5(1):5-12.

³ D. Shugars, D. Williams, S. J. Cline, and C. Fishburne, “Musculoskeletal back pain among dentists,” General dentistry, vol. 32, no. 6, pp. 481–485, 1984.

⁴ Bhandari, Shikha Baaghi, et al. "Musculoskeletal Disorders in Clinical Dentistry and Their Prevention." J Orofac Res 3.2 (2013): 106-14