Emotional disorders, parafunctional habits, and bruxism in hospital healthcare professionals in the COVID-19 post-pandemic period: a cross-sectional observational study

Abstract

During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospital healthcare professionals (HHP) were vulnerable to sources of anxiety that can lead to the onset or worsening of conditions such as bruxism and parafunctional habits (PH). This study aims to evaluate the relationship between sleep bruxism (SB), awake bruxism (AB), and PH and HHP’s stress, anxiety, and depression in the post-pandemic period. Data were collected via an online questionnaire composed of four sections: sample characterization, “Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale” (DASS-21), “Oral Behavior Checklist” (OBC), and diagnostic questionnaire of SB from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. This is a descriptive and inferential statistical analysis with 118 responses (mostly females and nurses). A total of 99.2% of the sample presented PH, 38.1% SB, and 686% AB. We found a significant association between AB and stress (p=0029), anxiety (p=0005), and depression (p=0.004); SB and anxiety (p=0.013); and between SB and AB and emotional changes in the studied sample.