AHMEDABAD: If you are among those who spend hours hunched over their phone or tablet or someone who spends a substantial amount of time in front of a laptop or desktop, chances are that you may have experienced stiff neck, pain between the shoulder blades, spasms or headaches. The phenomenon has come to be called the ‘tech neck’ — due to its direct association with use of technology — and has seen a sharp increase after the pandemic.
This year, ‘Move Your Spine’ is the theme of World Spine Day, with the campaign calling on people to care for their spines by staying active.
Experts say lifestyle issues have resulted in a major spike in cases in OPDs. Dr Piyush Mittal, director of the Government Spine Institute located on the Civil Hospital campus, said that if one compares pre- and post-Covid OPDs at the institute, there is about 20% rise in cases among population aged up to 40 years.
“Surgeries are still dominated by those above 55 years, but about 36% of the monthly OPDs consist of patients below or up to 40 years of age. They need non-surgical interventions such as physiotherapy and regular exercise. The primary reason for many spine-related issues we observe is due to sedentary lifestyle, and thus this year’s theme is ‘Move your Spine’,” said Dr Mittal, adding, abdominal obesity also changes natural curvature of spine.
Dr JP Modi, spine surgeon and former medical superintendent of Civil Hospital, said wrong posture is another major factor contributing to spine-related issues. “Many of us curl up on the sofa or bed while using the mobile phone or working on the laptop. Hours of hunching, lack of proper support and bad ergonomics at work often cause spinal issues. Lower back pain is the most common complaint we get. But lumbar (mid-back) and cervical (top of spine) issues are also getting more common,” he said.
Dr Modi stressed on regular exercise that involves all muscles and strengthens back muscles. “Our physiology has high chances of back issues with our centre of gravity on the spine. Excessive hunching or pushing of spine due to obesity causes change in its shape that also affects other parts of our body. Thus, the end message is, one must invest in self and exercise a bit regularly,” he said.
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