1. International Dental Journal 2013; 63: 26–29
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
doi: 10.1111/idj.12000
Health of dentists in United Arab Emirates
Raghad Hashim* and Khalid Al-Ali
Ajman University of Science and Technology, Ajman, UAE.
Objectives: The aims of this study were to investigate the prevalence and nature of some health and lifestyle problems
among dentists in United Arab Emirates (UAE). Method: A cross-sectional study with a one-stage complex sampling
technique using a self-reported questionnaire distributed to all 844 dentists, working in three cities (Abu Dhabi, Dubai
and Sharjah) in UAE. Results: Seven hundred and thirty-three (87%) dentists, aged 22–70 years, responded. More than
half (n = 442, 61%) of dentists do not exercise regularly. Around one-seventh of the dentists are smokers. One hundred
and eighteen dentists (16%) reported having some known systemic problem. The most common systemic health prob-
lems were cardiovascular diseases (n = 56, 8%). Conclusion: The present study indicates that the prevalence of exercise
among dentists in UAE is relatively low and some systemic health problems, especially cardiovascular diseases, are pres-
ent among dentists practicing in UAE. Cigarette consumption is relatively high in this population of dentist. Further
continuing education and investigation of the appropriate intervention to improve rates of exercise and reduce the level
of smoking among dentists in UAE is needed, and this may help reduce the level of systemic disease.
Key words: Health, exercise, smoking, dentists, UAE
Dentistry can be a stimulating and rewarding occupa- This study was designed to investigate the prevalence
tion but is also physically and mentally demanding1. and nature of some health and lifestyle problems of
It has been suggested that dentists lack awareness and dentists in UAE, including occupational issues that
knowledge about managing their stress2–4. The most relate to exercise, cigarette smoking and systemic dis-
common stressors reported include time-related pres- eases.
sure, heavy workloads, financial concerns, anxious
patients, staff problems, poor working conditions,
METHODS
medical emergencies in the surgery and the routine
nature of the job2,5. Failure to adapt to or contend The present study was approved by the ethics commit-
with the working environment can predispose to ill- tee of Ajman University of Science and Technology
ness6. The most frequent causes of premature retire- (AUST), the General Authority for Health Services for
ment among dentists are musculoskeletal disorders the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, Department of Health and
(29.5%), cardiovascular disease (21.1%) and neurotic Medical Services of government of Dubai, and Minis-
symptoms (16.5%), as reported by Burke et al.7; try of Health in UAE. This research was conducted in
therefore, practicing dentists should be aware of these full accordance with the World Medical Association
illnesses and take steps to avoid them, especially mus- Declaration of Helsinki and written consents were
culoskeletal problems and cardiovascular disease7. obtained from all participants in this study.
Despite anecdotal evidence of these conditions, little The questionnaire used in this study consists of 21
has been published on systemic problems specifically closed-ended questions that provided information on
in relation to dentists. individual characteristics such as age, gender, marital
Self-awareness and the benefits of regular exercise status, number of years since graduation and number
are important needs. Various studies have recorded of hours worked per week. Furthermore, information
self-perceived health and health-related behaviours of on a range of health issues of dentists was sought,
dentists in various countries but little is known about including exercise, cigarette smoking and systemic
the health of dentists in United Arab Emirates (UAE). diseases. A total of 844 dentists (general dental
26 © 2013 FDI World Dental Federation

2. Health problems
practitioners and specialists) working in three cities dentists in the public sector than in the private sector
(Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah) in both private and (P < 0.05; data not presented).
public sectors in UAE were selected for inclusion in As shown in Table 3 more than one-fifth of the
this study. Participants had to have at least 1 year of male dentists are smokers, and there were significant
work experience in the current position to be included differences between regular smoking and gender
in the study. (P < 0.05). There was a clear association between
The clinics were selected from the membership reg- having systemic disease and regular smoking
ister of Ministry of Health for emirates of Abu Dhabi, (P < 0.01; data not presented).
Dubai and Sharjah. This includes dental clinics, medi- The prevalence of reported systemic problems have
cal centres, polyclinics and hospitals. The purpose of been summarized in Table 4. One hundred and eigh-
the questionnaire and how the questions should be teen dentists (16%) reported having some known sys-
answered was explained and, whenever necessary, fur- temic problem at some time since graduation. The
ther information was provided to the participant. The most commonly reported systemic illnesses included
questionnaires were distributed by the researchers cardiovascular diseases (n = 56, 8%), gastrointestinal
between July 2005 and February 2006. All the data conditions (n = 38, 5%), neurological symptoms
entered into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Data were (n = 14, 2%) and respiratory problems (n = 9, 1%),
then transferred into SPSS windows version 11.0 (SPSS with the remainder reporting a variety of different
Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) for analysis. The chi-square conditions. There were significant difference in the
test was used were appropriate and the level of statis-
tical significance was set at P < 0.05. Univariate and Table 2 Number (percentage) of dentists reported to
bivariate analysis were used when appropriate. be exercising regularly and reported reasons for not
exercising classified by sex
RESULTS Male Female Total
n (%) n (%) n (%)
This cross-sectional study examined the prevalence of,
and some factors associated with, health problems Exercise regularly
Yes* 205 (46) 80 (28) 285 (39)
among dentists in UAR. Questionnaires were com- No 236 (54) 206 (72) 442 (61)
pleted by 733 dentists from Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Total 441 (100) 286 (100) 727 (100)
Sharjah from both public and private sectors with a Reasons for not exercising
Not a sports person** 24 (5) 30 (10) 54 (7)
total response rate of 87%. Missing data were No time** 167 (38) 147 (51) 314 (43)
excluded from the analysis. Of the 733 dentists, 445 Too tired** 61 (14) 78 (27) 139 (19)
(61%) were male and 288 (39%) were female, with Others 26 (6) 24 (8) 50 (7)
an age range of 22–70 years (mean Æ SD *P < 0.05.
38.1 Æ 10.3). Background data on age, number of **P < 0.01.
years since graduation (or in clinical practice) and
working hours per week are summarized in Table 1. Table 3 Number (percentage) of dentists reporting
Male dentist were found to work for longer hours smoking on a weekly basis by sex
than female dentists.
More than one-third of the dentists (39%) reported Smoking on a weekly basis Male Female Total
n (%) n (%) n (%)
exercising on a regular basis (Table 2). Male dentists
were significantly more likely to report exercising on Non-smoker 351 (79) 277 (98) 628 (86)
a regular basis (P < 0.05). A variety of reasons for Smoker* 92 (21) 7 (3) 99 (14)
not excising regularly were given (Table 2), with the *P < 0.05.
most common reason being lack of time (43%). Not
exercising on regular basis was more common among
Table 4 Prevalence of reported systemic problems by
sex
Table 1 Age, number of years since graduation and Male Female Total
working hours by sex n (%) n (%) n (%)
Male (n = 445) Female (n = 288) With systemic problem 74 (17) 44 (15) 118 (16)
(Mean Æ SD) (Mean Æ SD) Type of systemic problems
Cardiovascular* 42 (9) 14 (5) 56 (8)
Age (years) 40.8 Æ 9.2 36.4 Æ 7.5 Gastrointestinal 22 (5) 16 (6) 38 (5)
Number of years 16.7 Æ 9.2 13.5 Æ 8.1 Symptoms of neurosis 8 (2) 6 (2) 14 (2)
since graduation Respiratory problems 4 (1) 5 (2) 9 (1)
Working hours 30.5 Æ 15.5 26.6 Æ 14.5 Others 22 (5) 15 (5) 37 (5)
per week (hours)
*P < 0.05.
© 2013 FDI World Dental Federation 27

3. Hashim and Al-Ali
prevalence of cardiovascular disease and sex prevalence of dentists who reported smoking is of par-
(P < 0.05). ticular concern; therefore, continuing education in the
avoidance of smoking would be beneficial. Further
studies are needed to identify the causes of this high
DISCUSSION
rate of smoking and to identify the appropriate inter-
This cross-sectional study examined the prevalence of, ventions that would reduce its prevalence among den-
and some factors associated with health problems in tists in UAE.
dentists in UAE by means of a self-administered ques- In general, it would be expected that the prevalence
tionnaire. To our knowledge, this is the first study to of disease among dentists would be lower compared
report on health problems among dentists working in with averages from other groups within the popula-
UAE. Although the response rate for this study was tion because dentists belong to a higher socioeco-
good, one of the major limitations of this type of nomic grouping12,13, and higher socioeconomic status
research is that people may not accurately report what affords better dietary habits, better living conditions
they actually do. and the ability to transform health information into
In most studies the dentists are reported to be rel- action14. In this respect, the prevalence of illnesses
atively inactive and very few took any form of such as cardiovascular disease, tumours and respira-
physical exercise although they acknowledged the tory disease is higher within the general population
benefits of physical exercise4. The prevalence of than in the dental profession15. The present study
exercise in this population of dentists was relatively shows that around one-sixth of the dentists (16.1%)
low, particularly given the relatively high rates of have systemic diseases, and these were mainly cardio-
musculoskeletal problems seen in this population8. vascular problems. This percentage is lower than that
The present investigation showed that only 39% of reported in a study conducted by Leggat et al.9 in
dentists reported exercising on a regular basis. Simi- Thailand where they found that 27.8% of dentists
lar findings were reported in Thailand9. It has been had a systemic diseases.
noted that poor general physical fitness has been It was noted that the prevalence of systemic prob-
associated with musculoskeletal symptoms. This lems among dentists in the public sector were higher
finding is in line with the study of Leggat et al.9. than among dentists in the private sector. This is
Conversely, a study conducted in Poland10 reported could be caused by the different position of public
no significant relationship between the practice of sector dentists in the in the workplace hierarchy, with
physical activity and the number of musculoskeletal possibly more stress over work activities compared
disorders. with private practitioners, or it might be attributed to
A significant association was found between lack of the fact that dentists in the private sector exercise
regular exercise and the gender of the participant: more regularly. Although a cross-sectional study can-
being a female dentist was significantly associated not show causality, the results imply that physical
with not exercising regularly. The main reason exercise is a buffer against systemic problems. This
reported for this was lack of time, which could be finding is supported by a study conducted in Fin-
attributed to home and family responsibilities. How- land16. Lehto et al.16 suggested that poor general
ever, those who reported not exercising regularly physical fitness may be partly responsible for these
because of time limitation were working more than problems and there is certainly scope for further
35 hours per week. This indicates that those dentists decreasing the prevalence and severity of these prob-
could adjust their working time in order to exercise lems by performing regular specific exercises17,18.
regularly and improve their physical fitness. Therefore, measures should be investigated to improve
In addition, it was noted that dentists working in participation rates in exercise amongst this group of
the public sector exercised much less regularly than dentists. In addition, male dentists reported having
dentists in the private sector. This might be attributed more systemic problems compared to their female col-
to the working times for the dentists. Dentists work- leagues. Notably, the prevalence of systemic diseases
ing in the public sector in UAE have a fixed working was higher among smokers and smoking is a well-
time for 8 hours continuously, while dentists in the known hazard to health.
private sector work on average two 4-hours shifts Consideration of occupational and individual risk
(4 hours in the morning and 4 hours in the evening); factors, prevalence, symptoms and consequences of
therefore, they have more a flexible working time these disorders, and implementing the recommended
healthy lifestyle habits such as exercise. health and safety measures can enable a long and
It is surprising that almost 14% of dentists smoke healthy career. It is therefore essential to provide
in UAE, as this rate of smoking appears to be much background information for dentists regarding the
higher than that reported in other populations of den- magnitude of the problem, particular risk factors and
tists1,11, specifically male dentists. This high recommendations for prevention 19.
28 © 2013 FDI World Dental Federation

4. Health problems
CONCLUSION 6. Gonzalez YM. Occupational diseases in dentistry. N Y State
Dent J 1998 64: 26–28.
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problems, especially cardiovascular diseases, are pres- assessment of reasons for premature retirement. Br Dent J 1997
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in the United Arab Emirates. Int Dent J 2012 62: 52–56.
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9. Leggat PA, Chowanadisai S, Kedjarune U et al. Health of den-
consumption was relatively high in this population of tists in southern Thailand. Int Dent J 2001 51: 348–352.
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Acknowledgement
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None declared. 16. Lehto TU, Helenius HYM, Alaranta HT. Musculoskeletal
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