Pain and musculoskeletal pain syndromes related to computer and video game use in adolescents

Publication Type  Journal Article
Year of Publication  2006
Authors  Zapata, A. L.; Moraes, A. J. P.; Leone, C.; Doria, U.; Silva, C. A. A.
Journal Title  European Journal of Pediatrics
Volume  165
Pagination  408-414
ISBN Number  0340-6199
Accession Number  ISI:000237193700014
Key Words  adolescent; pain; fibromyalgia; hypermobility; computer; video game; REPETITIVE STRAIN INJURY; PHYSICAL-ACTIVITY; MYOFASCIAL PAIN; CHILDREN; PREVALENCE; DISORDERS; MEDIA; RISK; FIBROMYALGIA; POPULATION
Abstract  

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the presence of pain and musculoskeletal pain syndromes in adolescents and associate them to computer and video game use. A cross-sectional study was performed on the entire adolescent population (n=833) of a private situated in the city of Sao Paulo. The research included a questionnaire and physical examination of the musculoskeletal system. Statistical analysis was carried out with Fisher, chi-square, Mann Whitney tests and logistic regression. A total of 791 adolescent was evaluated. A computer was used by 99% and video games by 58%. Pain was reported by 312 (39.4%) students: 23% complained of back pain, 9% of upper limb pain, 4% of diffuse pain and 4% of pain in the trapezium muscle. A clinical examination was carried out in 359 students, and one or more musculoskeletal pain syndromes were present in 56 students (15.6%): benign joint hypermobility syndrome in 10%, myofascial syndrome in 5%, tendonitis in 2% and fibromyalgia in 1%. In the multivariate analysis, the logistical regression showed that the independent variables in the prediction of pain were sex [odds ratio (OR): 2.19, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.33-3.61] and age (OR: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.07-1.28) and that the prediction of musculoskeletal pain syndromes were sex (OR: 3.17, 95% CI: 1.69-6.22) and number of days a week using the computer (OR: 1.22, 95% CI: 1.05-1.42). However, the variations in the dependent variables by the mathematical regression models were low. Despite the frequent use of computer and video games among adolescents, this was not associated with the presence of pain and musculoskeletal pain syndromes.


0

Free Registration

Registered users have the added benefit of being able to:

  • Search/filter the bibliography to find just the article you are looking for. You can search the computer games research bibliography by author, year, keyword, title or publication type.
  • Export references from the video games bibliography to a format suitable for your own work. Options currently include tagged and XML for Endnote users and BibTex for the rest of the world.
  • Post comments to discuss the paper or alert fellow researchers to other resources.
  • Add their own references using the 'create content' -> 'biblio' option in the block on the left.
  • NEW: Use the Biblio Search box located on the right hand of the page.
  • NEW: Browse by journal title, book title, author or keyword using the new Faceted Search tool.