Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40279498›Full record

ArticleEuropean journal of dental education : official journal of the Association for Dental Education in Europe2026

Understanding the Burden of Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders in Dental Students: A Multinational Cohort Study.

Özlem Daltaban, Mükerrem Hatipoğlu, Mihaela Tanase, Ana Maria Pistol, Carmen Ioana Biriş, Milanko Djuric, Tanja Veljovic, Enis Redjep, Mirko Mikic

Abstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
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Article in European journal of dental education : official journal of the Association for Dental Education in Europe, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Özlem DaltabanDepartment of Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Türkiye.ORCID 0000-0003-2246-8782
Mükerrem HatipoğluDepartment of Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Türkiye.
Mihaela TanaseDepartment of Pedodontics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania.
Ana Maria PistolDepartment of Pedodontics, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania.
Carmen Ioana BirişFaculty of Dental Medicine, George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Science and Technology, Targu Mureș, Romania.
Milanko DjuricDepartment of Dental Medicine,Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia.
Tanja VeljovicDepartment of Dental Medicine,Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia.
Enis RedjepDepartment of Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dental Medicine, International Balkan University, Skopje, North Macedonia.
Mirko MikicDepartment of Dentistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Montenegro, Podgorica, Montenegro.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionTo evaluate the prevalence and potential risk factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among fifth-year dental students from Romania, Türkiye, Serbia, North Macedonia and Montenegro. MATERIALS AND

methodsA prospective questionnaire-based survey was conducted, including demographics, the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire and potential factors related to WMSDs (daily working hours, number of patients treated, preferred working position, chair support type, prolonged sitting, knowledge of ergonomic guidelines, physical activity levels and daily electronic device use).

resultsA total of 297 individuals participated in this study; 107 (36%) Romania, 79 (26.6%) Türkiye, 71 (23.9%) Serbia, 20 (6.9%) Montenegro and 20 (6.9%) North Macedonia. The prevalence of WMSDs in at least one body part over the past 12 months was 82%. The most affected areas were the neck (68%) and lower back (64%). Neck pain showed a moderate correlation with prolonged sitting and a weak correlation with electronic device usage. Significant risk factors identified for reported WMSDs included prolonged sitting (odds ratio (OR) = 4.56, 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.172-9.609, p < 0.001), clinical practice time (OR = 3.11, 95% CI: 1.495-6.469, p = 0.002) and female gender (OR = 3.42: 95% CI: 1.705-6.851, p = 0.001). Interestingly, regular physical activity significantly reduced the odds of WMSDs (OR = 0.316, 95% CI: 0.128-0.780, p = 0.012). Additionally, mobility exercises decreased the likelihood of WMSDs (OR = 0.252, 95% CI: 0.101-0.626, p = 0.003).

conclusionsThe high prevalence of musculoskeletal discomfort observed in this study reflects that WMSDs present a substantial health burden for dental students. This underlines the urgent need for effective educational strategies to improve dental students' awareness and knowledge of ergonomic practices and preventive measures for reducing these disorders.

Indexed as

Musculoskeletal DiseasesOccupational DiseasesStudents, DentalAdultCohort StudiesErgonomicsFemaleHumansMalePrevalenceProspective StudiesRepublic of North MacedoniaRisk FactorsRomaniaSerbiaSurveys and Questionnairesdentaleducationergonomicsmusculoskeletal diseasesoccupational healthpainstudent

Identifiers

PMID40279498
PMCPMC12834548

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.