Abstract
BackgroundChildren and adolescents are becoming the most prolific users of smart technology (ST) devices due to the numerous advantages presented by these devices. However, the overuse of ST devices can have detrimental impacts on health. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the pattern of ST device use among school students in Kuwait and the possible associated health problems.MethodsThis cross-sectional survey used a pretested questionnaire to collect data from students of different educational levels within the governmental sector: primary, secondary and high school. Chi-square tests were applied to find associations or significant differences between the categorical variables, in which p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsThis study included 3015 students, of whom 53.6% were female. The sample had an equal distribution of primary (33.8%), secondary (32.4%) and high school students (33.8%). Almost all of the participants (99.7%) owned a ST device, chiefly smartphones (87.7%). Most of the students used ST devices for > 4 total hours per day on average, which is categorised as “overuse”. Among those overusing ST devices, the symptoms most commonly experienced included headaches (35.0%), sleep disturbances (36.6%) and neck/shoulder pain (37.7%). Students who used ST devices for < 1 h per session experienced eye-related problems. Moreover, students who played sports on a regular basis were more likely to spend less time per session on ST devices. The prolonged use of ST devices was associated with higher reporting of seizures, eye squints and transient vision loss.ConclusionThe overuse of ST devices per day and per session by school-aged children has the potential to have a detrimental impact on their health, as has been noticed among students in Kuwait. Healthcare professionals, school authorities and parents could use these results to plan strategies to change ST device use behaviours among schoolchildren.
Highlights
Children and adolescents are becoming the most prolific users of smart technology (ST) devices due to the numerous advantages presented by these devices
Smart technology (ST) devices, including smartphones and tablets, are electronic gadgets able to offer various features that users need in their daily activities, including phone calls, built-in digital cameras, Internet access, telecommunication media and software applications designed for multiple purposes
The results show that ST device overuse was seen across all educational regions; it was highest in Jahra (64.3%) and lowest in Ahmadi (56.5%; p = 0.024)
Summary
Children and adolescents are becoming the most prolific users of smart technology (ST) devices due to the numerous advantages presented by these devices. ST devices have similar capabilities to a personal computer or laptop, providing users with access to the internet through their mobile phones, wherein most of the online activities are based on online communication (e.g. WhatsApp), social media (e.g. Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat) and entertainment (e.g. games, films and music) The availability of these functions encourages people to use these devices at any time and from anywhere, and for long periods of time to the extent that they become dependent on them. It is reported that the most frequent internet users are adolescents and young adults and they may use it without awareness of its potential negative consequences [5] They are more vulnerable to the adverse effects of SP overuse [5, 6]. Another study reported that adolescent and elementary school students have addictions to the use of smartphones similar to those seen among adults [9]. Regardless of the advantages of ST devices, detrimental effects are becoming apparent in society
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