Purpose: Ergonomics in dentistry poses some challenges to dentists and may require considerable concentration and attention to detail. This research enables early recognition and prevention of common ergonomic-related conditions, such as carpel tunnel syndrome, back pain and neck pain. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of ergonomic-related problems concerning carpel tunnel syndrome (CTS) and to know the efficacy of independent and combined clinical tests used in diagnosing it.
Materials and methods: Initially the participants were instructed to complete a self-administered questionnaire regarding the severity of symptoms of their hands on a hand-wrist diagram and a visual analogue scale. The principle investigator evaluated all questionnaires independently and four clinical tests were used on both hands in a systematic (non-randomised) order for subjects who had symptoms. Those with residual symptoms that exceeded beyond 1 min interval were identified and controlled for the statistical analyses.
Results: The most common symptom noted in the study group was tingling and numbness of fingers (66.46%) followed by neck pain (66.34%). 29.26% of subjects reported moderate difficulty in typing and driving vehicles, whereas 26.82% subjects felt moderate difficulty in grasping and carrying shopping bags. 61.94% of subjects with symptoms spent more than 1 h daily of their free time on mobile phones or other smart devices. Individually, in our study the Tinsel's sign stood out as ineffective in ruling out CTS when compared with Phalen's test. Combination tests like Phalen's test and compression tests are confirmatory to CTS diagnosis and 66.34 % of the research group were hence diagnosed for CTS.
Conclusions: A positive criteria for CTS, neck and shoulder pain is identified in our study as being due to long-term use of mobile devices. Further, combination tests like Phalen's with pressure provocation tests proved accurate in conforming CTS. Future research is needed to confirm the diagnostic utility of these independent and combined clinical tests in less prevalent settings, including general dental practitioners and occupational worksites.
Trial registration: The current study is registered in King Khalid University, College of dentistry ethical committee SRC/REG/2016-17/107.
Keywords: Phalen's test; Tinsel's sign; carpel tunnel syndrome; ergonomics.