Smart Phone Aches

Techno-health Glitches

- Dr. Smruti Swagatika Dash (PT) and Mr. Ansuman Rath

With advancing technology humans are definitely leading a comfortable life but not to forget, everything comes in with a bane too. We pay a hefty price for any technical device that we use not only the dollars I am talking about but also the health dangers that come along.

In today’s world we are mostly in the clutches of smart phone. With the world at our finger tips we have associated problems which we face on a day to day basis from finger to toes because of smart phones.

The number of smart phone users by 2019 would be nearly 2.7 billion1. With the increase in smart phone usage since the last 5 years the number of patients with musculoskeletal pain is also increasing day by day. In a study it has been found that text messaging in smart phones does produce symptoms in neck and upper extremity2.

The age group of smartphone users varies, ranging from students to workers to elderly people3. The musculoskeletal disorders that often occur are caused by repeated motions and by the phone user’s minimal muscle tension caused by long hours of exposure.

In addition, poor postures lead to fatigue, which can have negative effects, such as reduced physiological function, disruption of the autonomic nervous system, creation of problems in daily life, and effects on both the visual and the musculoskeletal systems, leading to headaches and stress 4,5.

The musculoskeletal disorders related to smartphone use include muscle fatigue and loading of the for neck and shoulder muscles, due to the repeated motions of hands, wrists, and arms6,7,8,9. As a result, pain, stiffness, insensitivity to pain, and quivers in the neck, shoulders, and arms may appear. Shoulder-arm neck syndrome is mainly found in people who do repetitive work for more than six months.