Prevalence of Early Cervical Degenerative Symptoms and Tech-Neck Awareness Among Frequent Mobile Gamers
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Background: Prolonged smartphone use and mobile gaming are increasingly associated with neck pain, forward head posture, cervical stiffness, and functional limitation among young adults. Frequent mobile gamers may be at particular risk because gaming often involves sustained screen focus, static cervical flexion, and limited movement breaks. Objective: To assess the prevalence of self-reported cervical musculoskeletal symptoms, neck-related functional disability, smartphone addiction level, and tech-neck awareness among frequent mobile gamers. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among 381 young adults aged 15–35 years at The University of Lahore. Participants who reported regular smartphone use and mobile gaming for at least 1 hour per day or 7 hours per week were included. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire, Numeric Pain Rating Scale, Neck Disability Index, and Smartphone Addiction Scale–Short Version. Descriptive statistics and chi-square analysis were performed using SPSS version 25. Results: The mean age was 24.58 ± 6.33 years. Moderate and severe neck pain were reported by 36.2% and 35.4% of participants, respectively. Cervical stiffness was reported sometimes by 33.6%, frequently by 33.1%, and always by 12.3%. Radicular symptoms were reported by 62.2%. Tech-neck awareness was present in 57.5%, while 61.7% reported knowledge of ergonomic screen-level posture. Tech-neck awareness was not significantly associated with daily gaming exposure, χ² = 0.867, p = 0.833. Conclusion: Frequent mobile gamers showed a high burden of self-reported cervical symptoms and functional limitation, with persistent gaps in tech-neck and ergonomic awareness. Preventive education, posture correction, movement breaks, and physiotherapy-based strategies may help reduce neck-related problems in this population
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