Examining Mental Workload and Incidence of Musculoskeletal Abnormalities of Dentists During Surgery

Objective Work-related musculoskeletal disorders are one of dentists’ most common occupational health problems. Human error is considered one of the critical factors of medical error. Musculoskeletal abnormality due to inappropriate work postures and mental workload are two important causes of human error in dental operations. Hence, this study investigates dentists’ mental workload and the incidence of skeletal-muscular disorders. Materials & Methods A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted in Shahid Shukri Dental Hospital in 2021. The sampling was done via the targeted sampling method and 42 individuals were included in the study. The NASA task load index and the Nordic questionnaire were used to collect the data. Data analysis was done using the SPSS software, version 26, at the significance level of 0.05. Results The average percentage of disorders were as follows: Neck area=30.1%, left shoulder=11.76%, right shoulder=13.74%, right elbow=9.23%, left elbow=6.56%, right wrist=28%, left-hand wrist=25.06%, upper back area=20.1%, waist=13.8%, hip and thigh=17.1%, knee=26% and ankle=23.46%. Age and work experience had a significant relationship with the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders (P<0.05). The effort component with a Mean±SD of 74.95±22.16 received the highest score and discouragement with a Mean±SD of 49.92±26 got the lowest score compared to other components. The central sterilization department, with a mean of 67.41±24.86, exhibited a higher mental workload than other departments. In contrast, the admission department, with a mean of 50.72±26.59, reported a lower mental workload than other cases. Conclusion Musculoskeletal disorders are related to workload and work capacity. Creating suitable working conditions, providing more training programs to employees, and strengthening their mental workload capacity can help prevent occupational injuries in the workplace.