Work-related musculoskeletal disorders among dental students: a cross-sectional study integrating the pain adaptation model

This study aimed to assess the prevalence, anatomical distribution, and contributing biological and psychosocial factors of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among dental students. We used the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (NMQ) to determine the prevalence and anatomical distribution of WMSDs, integrating biological and psychosocial variables, including stress, anxiety, and quality of life levels measured by the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Assessment (GAD-7), and World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief Form (WHOQOL-Bref), respectively. We used chi-square tests to analyze differences between the prevalences of independent groups, and binary logistic regression models to identify potential predictors among sociodemographic and psychosocial characteristics. A total of 239 students were contacted to participate and 123 answered the questionnaire, setting the response rate at 51.5