Prevalence of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Symptoms Among Dentists in Benghazi City - Libya

Abstract

Introduction: Many diseases may affect the nerves of a wrist, one of them is Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). In the general population, the frequency of CTS prevalence ranged between 3% and 6%. Objectives: To demonstrate the prevalence of CTS symptoms among dentists working in Benghazi-Libya. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2019. 205 dentists working in 14 different dental clinics across the city were asked to fill in a questionnaire regarding the symptoms of CTS. Results: Out of 205 questionnaires distributed, only 132 dentists (64.4 %) responded, 73 were male (55.3%) and 59 (44.7%) were female. Out of those participants, 81 dentists (61.3 %) had one or more symptoms of CTS. 32 dentists (24.2%) experienced hand or wrist pain at night, whereas 42 dentists (31.8%) complained of wrist pain during the daytime. In addition, 19 dentists (14.4%) felt hand numbness and 34 (25.8%) suffered from hand weakness during work. Moreover, hand-tingling problems were observed in 23 dentists (17.4%), and the difficulty with grasping and using small objects were reported in 19 dentists (14.4%). Finally, the difficulty of handling manual devices and surgical forceps was detected in 12 dentists (9.1%) and 37 dentists (28%) respectively. Conclusion: This study shows a significant number of dentists working in Benghazi have symptoms of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.