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

Objective To 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. Design Case–control study. Setting Outpatient clinics of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Neurology at a university hospital. Participants A total of 158 adults, including 78 individuals diagnosed with cervicogenic headache and 80 age- and sex-matched healthy controls. Main measures Smartphone 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. Results Individuals 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 p < 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 ( r = 0.224) and poor sleep quality ( r = 0.369), and negatively associated with mental health-related quality of life ( r = −0.277). Neck-related disability ( β = 0.327) and mental health-related quality of life ( β = 0.551) were independent predictors of problematic smartphone use, explaining 31% of the variance. Conclusions Problematic 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.