Problematic smartphone use as a modifiable factor in cervicogenic headache: Effects on pain, function, mood, and sleep

ObjectiveTo examine whether problematic smartphone use is associated with pain intensity, functional disability, emotional distress, sleep quality, and health-related quality of life in individuals with cervicogenic headache compared with healthy adults.DesignCase-control study.SettingOutpatient clinics of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Neurology at a university hospital.ParticipantsA total of 158 adults, including 78 individuals diagnosed with cervicogenic headache and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls.Main measuresSmartphone Addiction Scale-Short Form, Headache Impact Test-6, Neck Disability Index, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Jenkins Sleep Scale, and Short Form-12 Health Survey.ResultsIndividuals with cervicogenic headache reported significantly higher levels of smartphone-related behavioural problems, headache impact, neck-related disability, anxiety, depressive symptoms, and sleep disturbance than healthy controls (all <i>p</i> < 0.05). Physical and mental health-related quality of life scores were significantly lower in the cervicogenic headache group. Problematic smartphone use was positively associated with depressive symptoms (<i>r</i> = 0.224) and poor sleep quality (<i>r</i> = 0.369), and negatively associated with mental health-related quality of life (<i>r</i> = -0.277). Neck-related disability (<i>β</i> = 0.327) and mental health-related quality of life (<i>β</i> = 0.551) were independent predictors of problematic smartphone use, explaining 31% of the variance.ConclusionsProblematic smartphone use is associated with greater symptom burden, emotional distress, sleep problems, and reduced quality of life in individuals with cervicogenic headache. Smartphone-related behavioural patterns may represent a modifiable factor to be considered within comprehensive rehabilitation and lifestyle-based management strategies.