Clinical trial NCT05098626: Investigation of Spinal Health and Internet Addiction of Individuals Working Remotely
Official title: Investigation of Spinal Health and Internet Addiction of Individuals Working Remotely
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Conditions: Posture
Spine
Internet Addiction
Neck Pain
Low Back Pain
Keywords: Posture
Spine
Neck pain
Low back pain
Screen time
Internet addiction
Lead sponsor: Hacettepe University
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2021-10-28
Enrollment: 48
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 65
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Observational model: COHORT
Time perspective: CROSS_SECTIONAL
Sampling method: PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: Individuals working remotely during the pandemic

Brief summary: Low back pain and neck pain are common problems that affect people at certain times in their lives. These people constitute a significant part of the disease burden due to their recurrent complaints. People with low back and neck pain often seek medical attention. This situation causes individuals to apply to the hospital frequently and causes a serious cost at the social level.

When the risk factors for neck pain are examined, many factors such as genetics, sleep problems, smoking, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, poor posture, previous neck pain, trauma, back pain and poor general health cause neck pain to develop. Similarly, conditions such as age, obesity, and poor general health appear to be risk factors for low back pain. In addition to these risk factors, it has been reported that occupational factors such as long and sedentary working hours and unsuitable workplace conditions may also cause low back and neck pain. Fixed posture and prolonged sitting are thought to be risk factors for low back and neck pain, but opinions on this subject are not clear.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a global crisis since 2019 and caused a change in the lifestyle of all people around the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that social distance should be increased and face-to-face contact should be reduced to prevent the spread of the pandemic. For this reason, many institutions have decided to work remotely and trainings have been carried out remotely. The increasing teleworking style with the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in the average screen time of individuals. It was reported that time spent on the Internet increased by 52% compared to the pre-pandemic period.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between increased teleworking hours and internet use during the pandemic period in individuals with low back or neck pain. Researchers think that postural changes that may occur with increased distance working time, increased fixed posture and asymmetrical loading may contribute to the uncertain relationship between low back and neck pain and posture.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Working online during the pandemic process,
* Have a smart phone,
* Agree to voluntarily participate in the research.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Have a malignant condition,
* Loss of function due to neurological or systemic disease,
* Having had a surgical operation in the last 6 months,
* Have an unhealed fracture,
* Withdraw consent at any stage of the study.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Evaluation of Craniovertebral Angle
timeFrame: 5 minutes, in one assessment session.
measure: Evaluation of Sternocleidomastoideus Muscle Architecture
timeFrame: 5 minutes, in one assessment session.
measure: Evaluation of Internet Addiction
timeFrame: 10 minutes, in one assessment session.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Evaluation of the Time Spent in Front of the Screen
timeFrame: 2 minutes, in one assessment session.
measure: Evaluation of Body Mass Index
timeFrame: 2 minutes, in one assessment session.
measure: Evaluation of Low Back Disability
timeFrame: 5 minutes, in one assessment session.
measure: Evaluation of Neck Disability
timeFrame: 5 minutes, in one assessment session.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
Study officials:
affiliation: Hacettepe University
name: Yasemin Özel Aslıyüce, MSc
role: STUDY_CHAIR
affiliation: Hacettepe University
name: Dilara Onan, MSc
role: STUDY_CHAIR
affiliation: Hacettepe University
name: Müzeyyen Öz, MSc
role: STUDY_CHAIR
affiliation: Hacettepe University
name: Özlem Ülger, Professor
role: STUDY_DIRECTOR
References: