A national survey of occupational exposures assessing the relationships of the practice of dentistry and the reproductive health of women dentists is being conducted via a mailed questionnaire. Approximately 5,500 women who graduated from dental school from 1977 to 1986 and were 31-40 in the spring of 1992 were mailed questionnaires. The sample was chosen to allow for the opportunity to have dental occupational exposures during reproductive ages. The methodology builds upon work conducted at NIEHS on occupational exposures focusing on amalgams and nitrous oxide and primarily the reproductive outcomes of time to pregnancy and spontaneous abortion. This is the first attempt for the acquisition of these types of data via self administered questionnaire. An initial mailing, post-card follow-up and thank you, second questionnaire, and a follow-up letter from the American Dental Association, for a total of four mail contacts made during this fiscal year. A response rate near 60 percent has been achieved and telephone solicitation has begun to increase the response rate. A poster presentation was made at the 1993 IADR/AADR meeting on information from the pilot study of the project.
