[Comparative analysis of cause-specific mortality for dentists in the city of São Paulo].

The present study describes cause-specific mortality among dentists living in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, from 1980 to 2000, in search of possible indications of work-attributable risk. Official mortality information was supplied by the State Data Analysis System. Comparative analysis used analogous information for physicians and engineers. Analysis of death distribution according to underlying causes indicated the absence of significant differences that might suggest increased risk of death for dentists as compared to physicians and engineers. Dentists' deaths did not present worse indications for global and specific categories of infectious diseases, neoplasms, suicide, or central nervous system or circulatory diseases. A systematic excess mortality caused by injuries was observed for engineers, especially in traffic-related accidents, accidental falls, and other accidents. We observed the absence of significant discrepancies indicating work-attributable risk for dentists. This observation suggests that dentistry can be considered a safe profession, at least regarding exposure to systematic risk of death.