title: Musculoskeletal symptoms of the neck and shoulder among dental practitioners.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Musculoskeletal symptoms of the neck and shoulder represent a condition whose basic characteristic is pain. These conditions are very often present in dental health professionals. The aim of the paper was to determine presence of discomforts in areas of head, neck, shoulders, upper back and upper limbs at health professionals in area of dentistry, as well as discomfort localisation and methods of treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The research included 45 health professionals (dentists, dental assistants and dental technicians) employed at Dental Clinic of Vojvodina. The information was collected via questionnaire for analysis musculoskeletal disorders.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most of the dentists (75.9%) and the dental assistants (90.9%) as well as nearly half of the dental technicians (40%) experience discomforts in area of the neck, which are occasional, present in all three working positions and this discomforts are a little more frequent at women. The present musculoskeletal disorders are followed by headache, whose presence is statistically more significant compared to the other symptoms. The headache is usually located in the occipital part, it occurs individually or joined with other symptoms. Due to said discomforts the examinees in 59.4% of the cases don't contact the doctor. Medical therapy prevails in opposition to physical therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The discomforts deriving from the cervical part of the spine are present at great percentage of our examinees. Considering the fact that the said discomforts affect performing both professional and everyday activities, its prevention is necessary in order to avoid the consequences they carry.
authors.affiliation: University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Serbia.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Radanović
authors.affiliation: University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Serbia.|Dental Clinic of Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vučinić
authors.affiliation: University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Serbia.|Special Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, Novi Sad, Serbia.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Janković
authors.affiliation: University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Serbia.|Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Novi Pazar, Serbia.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mahmutović
authors.affiliation: University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Medicine, Serbia.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Penjašković
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003726:Dental Assistants; D003727:Dental Auxiliaries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003815:Dentists / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009333:Neck; D019547:Neck Pain / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D010146:Pain; D026741:Physical Therapy Modalities; D055771:Serbia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012782:Shoulder; D013131:Spine; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D060726:Torso
keywords: Musculoskeletal disorders; neck pain; occupational exposure; risk factors