Hearing assessment in dental practitioners and other academic professionals from an urban setting

Abstract

IntroductionExtended exposure to high-speed handpieces and other noise-intensive devices might put dentists at risk for possible hearing impairment. The aim of this study was to determine the hearing ability of dentists and other scientists for comparison.MethodsAfter approval by the ethics committee, 115 subjects (dentists and other academic professionals as controls) of both genders were enrolled in the study. Exclusion criteria were colds, ear-blockages or abnormal hearing-thresholds. An audiometric determination (Oscilla USB audiometer, AudioConsole 3, Inmedico A/S, Denmark) was performed in the frequency range of 125Hz to 8 kHz for both ears. Anamnestic data and number of years in the profession were assessed using a questionnaire. Differences between groups were analyzed with the Mann–Whitney-U-test.ResultsData from 53 dentists and 55 other academic professionals (69.4% male, 30.6% female) with a mean age of 51.7 ± 9.6 years and similar gender distributions in both groups were analyzed. The audiometric tests for the right and left air conduction showed that the hearing of dentists tended to be slightly more impaired than in the control subjects. For the frequencies 3 kHz and 4 kHz these differences were statistically significant for both ears. In contrast, no significant differences were found in this range for bone conduction.ConclusionsHearing impairment in dentists was slightly higher than in controls. Although other factors like environmental noise exposure were comparable for both groups, occupational exposure to high-speed handpieces and other noisy devices can be an additional burden for the hearing.

Occupational Health Problems among Dentists in Croatia

“…The results of audiometric tests showed that the hearing of dentists tended to be slightly more impaired than the hearing in the control group. For the frequencies 3 kHz and 4 kHz, those differences were statistically significant for both ears (16). In our study, hearing disorders were reported by 18.9 % of dentists, but only 5.3 % of them asked a doctor for help without any information about diagnostic procedures performed for hearing impairment diagnosis.…”

“…Rezultati audiometrijskih testova pokazali su da je sluh stomatologa nešto oštećeniji u usporedbi s kontrolnom skupinom. Na frekvencijama od 3 i 4 kHz ove razlike bile su čak i statistički značajne na oba uha (16). U ovom istraživanju o problemima sa sluhom izvijestilo je 18,9 % ispitanika, no samo njih 5,3 % tražilo je pomoć liječnika, ali nema informacija o provedenim dijagnostičkim postupcima u svrhu postavljanja dijagnoze.…”

“…Based on the available and relevant literature in a close cooperation with physicians of different specialties (orthopedist, dermatologist, otolaryngologist, ophthalmologist and neurologist) a questionnaire for the assessment of a dentist's overall health status was developed (14)(15)(16)(17). The questionnaire was divided into 3 sections.…”

Capacidade para o trabalho de cirurgiões-dentistas da atenção básica: prevalência e fatores associados

“…Essa é outra característica da organização de trabalho desses profissionais, que geralmente trabalham em um ambiente com alta tendência a ruídos, tais como os provenientes de motor de alta rotação, compressor, sugadores de saliva, além de ar condicionadofontes emissoras que, somadas, podem levar o profissional a um comprometimento da audição e de suas atividades ocupacionais 37,38 .…”

An exploratory study of noise exposures in educational and private dental clinics

“…We did not measure hearing among dental professionals, as has been done in a number of previous studies (4,20). Rather, we set out to better characterize noise exposures during dental work, and to assess possible differences in exposure profiles between dentists, dental hygienists and dental students.…”