Main occupational diseases that affect dentists: literature review

Abstract

In the last decades the literature has been publishing increasingly on factors associated with occupational diseases, functional limitations and disability for work, including those relating to dentists occupational health. Therefore, the objective of this study was to perform a literature review covering the major occupational diseases that dentists are exposed and how to prevent them. For this the most common physical illnesses was selected: the result of ergonomic problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome; dermatoses and allergies; hearing deficiencies and infectious diseases in main hepatitis C. Through the literature, it was concluded that the dentist is exposed to a number of illnesses, which require protection methods, ranging from labor and regular exercise to reduce the incidence of physical diseases and the use of protective equipment that will prevent the transmission of infectious diseases and even of skin problems.