Knowledge and Practice of Proper Ergonomic Posture duringSmartphone use by Undergraduate Students in College ofMedicine University of Lagos, Nigeria
Keywords:
Ergonomic posture, knowledge, practice, smartphone use, undergraduate studentsAbstract
Background: Literature is replete with the reports of adverse impacts of smartphones on physical, psychological and mental health of users. Hence, the knowledge of the risks associated with smartphones and the proper ergonomics adopted during its usage may be an important preventive tool. This study investigated the knowledge and practice of proper ergonomic posture during smartphone use by undergraduate students of a university medical college. Materials and Methods: A cross‑sectional analytical survey involving 231 undergraduate students of a university college of medicine. The instrument was a 21‑item self‑administered questionnaire adapted from previous studies and comprised of four sections. Section A collected information on the sociodemographic data of participants; Section B, on smartphone use by participants; Section C, on their knowledge of proper ergonomic posture during smartphone use and Section D, on their practice of proper ergonomic posture. Data were presented using the descriptive statistics of mean and percentages with the level of significance at P ≤ 0.05. Results: Almost a third of the respondents 66 (28.6%) use their phones 4–6 h daily, whereas nearly one‑third of the respondents use their phones for >12 h daily. Furthermore, majority of the respondents 124 (56.7%) have poor knowledge of proper standing ergonomic posture, 194 (84.0%) have poor knowledge of proper sitting ergonomic posture, whereas 149 (64.5%) have poor knowledge of proper wrist ergonomic posture. More than half of the respondents 126 (54.7%) do not have good practice of proper ergonomic posture when using smartphones. Conclusion: Medical college students possess poor knowledge or practice of proper ergonomic posture during smartphone use. Furthermore, more than half of the respondents do not practice proper ergonomic posture while using their smartphone.
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Copyright (c) 2021 Udoka A. Chris Okafor, Sunday Rufus A. Akinbo, Niniola Vanessa Takuro, Saturday Nicholas Oghumu (Author)
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