Cell phone addiction leads to orthopaedic problems

Doctors say that with the excessive use of smart phones, people are likely to get carpal tunnel syndrome — fibromyalgia, also known as the De Quervains disease. The early signs of this disease can be thumb and finger soreness and formation of calluses and numbness. Constant texting or browsing not only affects the patient's wrists and thumbs, but also strains the neck and shoulder area.

"Your condition can get as bad as having a cervical disc prolapsed with neurological deficit. There is a significant growth in the number of patients getting affected by this disease. There has been a 100% rise in the last five years. These patients mostly belong to the younger age group between 15-30 years, and this has become a common phenomenon in the metros because of easy access to several smart phones," said Dr I.P.S. Oberoi, senior orthopaedic consultant with Artemis Health Institute, New Delhi.

According to psychologists, cell phone addiction is mostly prevalent among the unsociable, unconventional and non-confident groups, and young individuals in particular. Then there are people who try to create a professional image of high efficiency with the help of a cell phone. "People start getting irritated more often and concentration level decreases. Depression is the most common and persistent problem among cell phone addicts. This addiction can also lead to brain tumour as revealed by studies," said Dr R. Chandra, a psychiatrist.

Dr Rajesh Verma, consultant orthopaedic with Gurgaon's Artemis Health Institute, who sees at least 30 cell phone addicts every month, advises regular exercise. "A few precautions and exercises can help your hands in the long run, like taking breaks from the phone every few hours or the use of Bluetooth while working and while driving, or even phones with larger keypads and other convenient phone accessories. Make sure that you exercise the affected muscle groups including both stretching and strengthening ones. Gentle massage and physio modalities also help," he said.

14 August in The Sunday Guardian.