The prevalence of barodontalgia among Jordanian military pilots

Abstract EN

Objectives: To determine the prevalence of Barodontalgia among Jordanian military male pilots and its impact on their performance during and after flight.

Methods: The study was conducted at the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RAF) headquarters and its peripheral air bases between January 2013 and July 2013.

A two page questionnaire was developed by the authors in Arabic inspired from different studies and sent to all active pilots in service in RAF, pilots were asked about their personal and professional data in the form of multiple choice questions and were asked about their experience regarding barodontalgia.

This included when and if any treatment was done and if the incident reported or not to the dental officer available at their base.

All the participants were asked to fill the questionnaire and return it either by hand or email.

Inquiries contained in the questionnaire included personal data, professional data and date related to possible dental pain during flight Results: A total of 305 responses were obtained of the 500 handed out or emailed for a (61%) response rate.

The age of the pilots ranged between 20 and 59 years where the mean age was 26 years.

This study showed that 10.49% of the sample had experienced barodontalgia at least once during their activities Conclusions: Barodontalgia is not a rare dental pain that occurs during flight and may have serious consequences on military pilot’s performance.

Though, a proper dental follow-up on regular basis may reduce the incidence and subsequent complications