Occupational Hazards/ Risks among Dental Staff in Afghanistan

Abstract

Shamila Azimi, Susan Azimi and Mashal Azami

Background: The risks that are exclusive to the dental care setting are known as occupational hazards in dentistry.

Aims: Dangers. This research analyses the prevalence of occupational hazards among dental staff in Afghanistan.

Methodology: A cross-sectional study, using an online survey including qualitative and quantitative questions. Data collection was started from 16th .03.2021 till 12th.05.2021 and completed by 206 dentists. The questionnaire was designed in Google form and data was collected by online link via social media such as “Facebook, and WhatsApp”.

Result: According to a survey the most common occupational hazards among dentists are musculoskeletal problems in Afghanistan. Among musculoskeletal problems, most of the responders had complained of backache while nobody had noticed any pain in their elbow joint. 55% of dentists were vaccinated for common diseases (HBV, HCV, HAV, etc.) and 41.6% were not vaccinated. 74% of participants strongly agreed that dentistry is a stressful field and 26.7% had a high level of fatigue due to work at the end of the day.

Conclusion: musculoskeletal problems especially backache are the most prevalent hazards among Afghan dentists and Continuing education programs have to be conducted to overcome these hazards.

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