Public Health Concerns in The Gaming World: Investigating Association of Insomnia and Neck Disability

Abstract

Background: Extended electronic devices used for video games can harm adolescent health. Therefore, this study investigates the association between neck pain severity and Insomnia and between sociodemographic variables and neck disability among video gamers in the Malaysian adult population. Methods: A cross-sectional study was adopted. 325 active video gamers were selected via snowball sampling. Neck pain severity and disability were measured with Numerical pain rating scale and Neck disability index, respectively. Insomnia is assessed with the Insomnia Severity Index. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 27.0 at a significant level of 5%. Results: Of the respondents, 48.6% experienced severe neck disability with 50.5% were classified as moderate insomnia. Furthermore, there is a significant association between neck pain severity and Insomnia in video gamers (p<0.05). In addition, sociodemographic variables (gender, age, BMI, type of occupation) exhibit a significant association with neck disability (p<0.05). Conclusion: About half of the participating video gamers who suffered from moderate neck pain and disability had moderate clinical Insomnia. There is a significant association between the severity of neck pain and insomnia, as well as between sociodemographic variables such as gender, age, BMI, occupation and neck disability among video gamers in the Malaysian adult population.