The Adverse Effect of Proprioceptive Sense in Head-Neck according to Smartphone Usage

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Most studies have reported pain in the head-neck and upper-limbs according to smartphone usage, which is related to the proprioception sense in the head and neck, but there have been few studies. Therefore, the aim of this study was identify the adverse effects of the proprioceptive sense in the head-neck according to smartphone usage. METHODS: Twenty-seven young adults (male 9, female 18) were enrolled in this study. The proprioceptive sense was measured through the joint reposition sense error and neural positon error in the head-neck during smartphone usage for 0, 5, and 20 minutes. The Noraxon MyoMotion system was used to record the joint position angle and neutral positon in the head-neck. One-way repeated ANOVA was used to identify the differences between the three smartphone use durations and the least-squares difference was used as a post hoc test. The data were analyzed using SPSS 18.0 software. RESULTS: The joint reposition sense error and neural positon error in the head-neck were significantly different among the 0, 5, and 20 minutes of smartphone usage (p < 0.05). In the post hoc test, the joint reposition sense error and neural positon error showed a significant difference between smartphone use for 0 minute and 5 minute, and between smartphone use for 0 minute and 20 minutes. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that smartphone use within 5 minutes can have adverse effects on the proprioceptive sense. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the appropriate use time and break time when using smart phones.