Smartphone overuse and its impact on musculoskeletal pain in the neck and wrists/hands in medical and nursing undergraduate students: a cross-sectional study.

The number of smartphone users is growing exponentially, and the pervasive use of smartphones is leading to escalated smartphone addiction. Young adults, especially medical students, are more prone to use smartphones for longer hours for educational purposes in addition to communication and social networking. Thus, this vulnerable group is susceptible to severe musculoskeletal issues. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of excessive smartphone use on musculoskeletal pain in the neck and wrists/hands. This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed with medical and nursing undergraduate students aged 17-34. A total of 151 students were included after written informed consent was obtained, and the study duration ranged from 4th March 2025 to 20th June 2025. The demographic questionnaire, the Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version questionnaire, and the modified Nordic musculoskeletal questionnaire were used as data collection tools. The mean SAS-SV score was 29.80 (± 8.28), ranging from 13 to 53, where the mean number of hours of smartphone usage was 4.37 (± 1.57). In this study, 36.4% of the participants were found to be addicted to smartphones, 33.6% of whom were females and 45.7% of whom were males. Neck pain was the most common musculoskeletal issue reported by participants, followed by lower back pain and wrist/hand pain. A significant association was found between the SAS-SV score and neck and wrist/hand pain, suggesting that the participants with higher SAS-SV score reported more frequent neck and wrists/hands pain. However, associations between the SAS-SV score and smartphone screen size and weight could not be established. Smartphone addiction is associated with various musculoskeletal issues such as, pain, fatigue, de Quervain's tenosynovitis and cervical spondylosis. Problematic use of smartphones is increasing and may also be associated with the poor academic performance of the students. Thus, studies in the future should focus on finding measures to mitigate this problem.