Examining Relationship between Occupational Acid Exposure and Oral Health in Workplace

Abstract

Background: Acid mist can suspend in the air and enter the body via skin contact, the respiratory tract, or even oral intake, which pose various health hazards. Previous studies have shown that occupational exposure to acid mist or acidic solutions is a major risk factor for oral diseases. However, the findings are inconsistent and do not consider individual factors and lifestyles that may cause the same oral diseases. Therefore, we conducted a comprehensive oral health survey and collected detail information to confirm the effect of acidic solution exposure on worker’s oral health. Methods: From 4 acidic solution factories, a total of 309 subjects (157 in control and 152 in exposed group) was enrolled. All participants competed oral examinations and self-report questionnaire, including the decayed, missing, and filled teeth (DMFT) index, community periodontal index (CPI), loss of attachment (LA) index, and tooth erosion. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the association between the acidic solution exposure and oral health.Results: The results showed that acid exposure was correlated with soft oral tissue injury rather than hard oral tissue in our survey. In the multivariate model (adjusted for sex, age, worked years, education level, mouthwash use, dental floss use, tooth brushing, mask use, smoking, drinking, chewing areca and dietary habits with acidic foods), significant relationships of acid exposure with LA score were observed (OR=2.32, 95% CI 1.03-5.26). However, the presence of acid exposure was not significantly associated with tooth erosion, DMFT, and CPITN.Conclusion: Our study highlighted that occupational acid exposure was an independent risk factor for periodontal health, especially LA. It is important to strengthen occupational hazard control, educate workers on oral disease and related factors, and raise the awareness of oral hygiene.

Traumatic dental injuries due to occupational safety accidents of adult workers in Korea: a cross-sectional study

“…Traumatic dental injuries that can occur in the work environment can drastically impact oral health and quality of life [14]. However, only few studies have investigated exposure to acidic substances in the work environment [15] and occupational dental erosion [16]. In addition, although studies related to general trauma and income level, occupation type, occupational status, and other socioeconomic factors are being actively conducted [17][18][19], evidence on the association between socioeconomic factors like occupation class and dental traumatic injuries is limited.…”