Smartphone Addiction Level and Neck Muscle
Condition: Smartphone Addiction; Neck Muscle Issue
MeSH terms: Behavior, Addictive; Internet Addiction Disorder
Study type: Observational

Summary: 
      Background/aim:The study was conducted to determine the smartphone addiction level of youths
      and to investigate the effect of addiction level on neck pain, functional level, pressure
      pain threshold (PPT) level, and muscle activation of neck muscles (upper trapezius (UT),
      cervical erector spina (CES), sternocleidomastoideus (SCM)).

      Methods:Superficial electromyography, PPT, Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Neck Disability Index
      (NDI) and Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS) were used as assessment tools.
    

Detailed description: 
      Smartphones, which are used quite frequently among adolescents, are becoming more and more
      indispensable in daily life and offer a wide variety of mobile applications for information,
      communication, education, and entertainment. The use of smartphones includes many user
      profiles such as teenagers, adults, children, working or not working. However, when looking
      at the smartphone user profile, it is seen that the largest proportion belongs to the young
      population.

      With the increasing frequency of use and addiction, many physiological, psychological, and
      social problems are encountered today. These problems can be classified into two categories
      that are psychological disorders (sleep disorders, aggressive or depressive symptoms, high
      anxiety level, low life satisfaction, dropping out of school, and antisocial personality
      disorder) and physiological disorders (dry eyes, carpal tunnel syndrome, neck or back pain,
      postural disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, and migraine headaches). Regarding its adverse
      effects on physical health, especially the increase in neck pain and the decrease in daily
      life activities and functionality are emphasized. The effects of smartphone use on the
      functional level are associated with the cervical posture and the sensitivity, spasm and
      proprioceptive disorders in the neck circumference structures created by this posture.
      Smartphone addiction and computer addiction, which has similar effects, are associated with
      neck problems and disability in healthy young people. It has been reported that smartphone
      addiction in students negatively affects physical health by reducing the amount of physical
      activity such as walking. In the literature, an increase in muscle fatigue and increased
      sensitivity in cervical erector spina (CES) and upper trapezius (UT) muscles have been
      reported due to prolonged smartphone use. Although there are data on the negative effects of
      smartphone use on many physiological parameters such as pain and functional level in the
      literature, there is a need for studies evaluating the effect of smartphone addiction, which
      has emerged as an important concept in recent years.

      Posture during phone use stands out as the primary cause of musculoskeletal disorders
      associated with smartphone use. During the use of the smartphone, the person maintains the
      posture in which the head is in flexion and the shoulder is in protraction for a long time to
      look at the device. It is known that the loads on the neck increase with the flexion of the
      head. This situation has effects not only on the neck musculoskeletal system but also on the
      shoulder and spine as it creates muscle imbalance. In current studies, it has been emphasized
      that posture disorder during smartphone use changes the activity of the UT muscle, CES
      muscle, neck extensor muscles, and hand muscles.

      There are various studies in the literature on muscle activation changes, musculoskeletal
      system changes, and changes in daily living activities with the use of smartphones. However,
      it is thought that there is a need for a study that correlates smartphone addiction with
      musculoskeletal problems such as pain and sensitivity, muscle activation changes in the neck
      muscles, and changes in functional status. It is thought that the determination of
      physiological effects such as neck pain and muscle activations that they cause even when they
      do not use phones, even when they do not use telephone, are thought to be effective in terms
      of drawing attention to the importance of preventing them. In light of this information, our
      study aimed to examine the effect of smartphone addiction levels on neck pain, functional
      status, and muscle activation.
    

Observational model: Other
Time perspective: Other
Sampling method: Probability Sample
Study population: 
        A total of 112 male university students studying at Süleyman Demirel University, Faculty of
        Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation were included in study.
      
Keywords: Smartphone Addiction; Neck Muscles; Pain; Muscle Activation; Functional Status