IT kids: exposure to computers and adolescents’ neck posture and pain

Musculoskeletal disorders such as neck pain have been related to computer use in adults and an association between computer use, neck posture and neck pain has been suggested. Computer use in increasing in children and thus the potential for related neck pain and postural changes is increasing. This study evaluated the neck pain, neck posture and computer use of 884 adolescents. Over one third (38%) of adolescents reported using computers for > 7 hours per week, with 4.5% reporting > 21 hours per week. Nearly one half (46.7%) reported ever having neck/shoulder pain, with 7.7% reporting chronic neck/shoulder pain. Computer use was related to neck/shoulder pain and to neck/shoulder postures. Adolescents who reported no use of computers or high use of computers were about twice as likely to report neck/shoulder pain as those who reported moderate use of computers (Odds Ratio = 1.79 and 2.51 respectively). Increasing computer use was related to increased head, neck and thorax flexion during usual sitting (rho=0.069, 0.067 and 0.129, p<.001 respectively). The results demonstrate neck/shoulder pain is a significant problem in adolescence and the potential impact of computer use needs exploring with longitudinal studies.