Are you a dentist who regularly experiences pain in your low back, neck, shoulders, wrists, or other areas? If so, it’s probably because of the nature of your job.
According to The Journal Of American Dental Association, “a significant number of today’s dentists experience musculoskeletal pain and are at risk of developing serious musculoskeletal disorders.”
When these injuries occur, the pain can slow you down and make it hard to make it through your day.
Dentists are often forced to:
- Suffer through long workdays and extended periods without pain relief.
- Miss days on the job because of pain resulting in financial loss and insecurity.
- Live with uncertainty about how to manage their symptoms.
With this in mind, it will be helpful to explore some of the common conditions dentists experience and what you can do to stay healthy, relieve pain, and enjoy life to the fullest.
Common Conditions for Dentists
The phrase “Tech Neck” describes neck pain from having one’s head bent forward while looking at their screen for prolonged periods. This bent forward position is similar to how dentists position themselves to work. As a result, dentists regularly report strains, sprains, and disc protrusions in the neck more than any other injury.
Other common injuries for dentists are:
- Shoulder Impingement
- Tendonitis
- Myofascial Pain Syndrome
- Trigger Points
- Carpal Tunnel
- Osteoarthritis
- Low Back Pain
- Sciatica
- Neuropathies
Many of these are minor conditions that can be easily avoided, managed, or treated.
What You Can Do to Stay Healthy
- Posture and Ergonomics: Be proactive about using proper posture at work. This will help reduce the likelihood of many of the conditions that dentists commonly suffer from.
- Therapeutic Exercises: In addition to proper ergonomics there are common exercises such as Bruggers that can help reduce your risk of neck and shoulder pain.
- Chiropractic: At InHomeChiro our team of Chiropractic Doctors are trained in specific occupational treatment protocols. Our Dentist treatment protocol is designed around the most common work duties and conditions Doctor’s of Dentistry and Orthodontics experience. We provide a tailored ergonomic consultation, therapeutic exercise regime, and the best hands-on Chiropractic treatment in San Diego County.
Yes, We Can Help! Even at Work!
To summarize what we have covered, Dentists have a higher risk of experiencing neck, shoulder, wrist, and low back pain than the average population.
Studies show that therapeutic exercise, ergonomic training, and non-invasive treatment techniques effectively treat and prevent injuries experienced by dentists. All of our Chiropractic Doctors are mobile specialists trained in ergonomics, therapeutic exercise, extremity/spine care. Book Now to make Improving your health more manageable than ever before.
References:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00420-019-01480-x
