Daily computer usage correlated with undergraduate students' musculoskeletal symptoms.
BACKGROUND
A pilot prospective study was performed to examine the relationships between daily computer usage time and musculoskeletal symptoms on undergraduate students.


METHODS
For three separate 1-week study periods distributed over a semester, 27 students reported body part-specific musculoskeletal symptoms three to five times daily. Daily computer usage time for the 24-hr period preceding each symptom report was calculated from computer input device activities measured directly by software loaded on each participant's primary computer. General Estimating Equation models tested the relationships between daily computer usage and symptom reporting.


RESULTS
Daily computer usage longer than 3 hr was significantly associated with an odds ratio 1.50 (1.01-2.25) of reporting symptoms. Odds of reporting symptoms also increased with quartiles of daily exposure.


CONCLUSIONS
These data suggest a potential dose-response relationship between daily computer usage time and musculoskeletal symptoms.
Chang
Che-Hsu Joe
CH
Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Amick
Benjamin C
BC
Menendez
Cammie Chaumont
CC
Katz
Jeffrey N
JN
Johnson
Peter W
PW
Robertson
Michelle
M
Dennerlein
Jack Tigh
JT
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001132:Arm; D016287:Computer Peripherals; D034201:Computers, Handheld; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008838:Microcomputers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009140:Musculoskeletal Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013997:Time Factors; D014600:Utilization Review / Q000706:statistics & numerical data