Gadget users: What you need to know about text thumb & text neck

Nor Zetty Hazra is your average tech-savvy 28-year-old executive. Her smartphone? It's a must-have item. Her tablet? Check. Her desktop? Well, that's in her office.

As an administrative executive at a university, she is constantly on-the-go and her gadgets are her trusted companion.

“I often check my messages every five to ten minutes. I need it to chat with my friends. For work purposes, it is for sending and receiving emails,” confessed Nor Zetty.

When she is not texting, she can be found swiping her tablet screen.

“I use it to surf the net,” she admitted. “Even at night before bed, I will either be checking my messages or on my tablet. It’s common for people to be on multiple gadgets. It’s the lifestyle now. ”

However, just over a year ago, she started to feel some numbness in her dominant hand, especially around the thumb area.

“I didn’t know what was wrong but I also had sore muscles.”

Just over a month ago when the pain was too much to endure, and it was taking a toll on her daily activities, she decided to seek medical assistance.

When met at a private hospital in the capital city, she had just concluded a nerve conduction test to determine the cause of the pain.

What's for sure, Nor Zetty is not alone. Consultant orthopeadic surgeon at Prince Court Medical Centre Dr Yong Chee-Khuen has been receiving one to two patients a month, who are experiencing sore finger and wrist joints and even neck problem.

Dr Yong believed that it could be due to a medical condition known as text thumb and neck thumb.

“It is a disease of modern lifestyle, due to excessive use of thumb in texting by thumb-typing typically on tiny and cramped QWERTY keyboard in a smart phone at an awkward position.

"There are no specific findings here in Malaysia but when we have patients coming in, we ask very specific questions. Usually, it has to do with having multiple devices and excessive texting," he said.

In the following video, Dr Yong explains further:

Already considered a modern lifestyle, it is very common to see individuals with a smartphone and a tablet. For some, it's already an addiction.

“How many SMS do you send in a day? Or Whatsapp. An average youth would send up to 100 text messages per day and that's equivalent to 3000 messages a month. Just imagine how many words you type, the repetitiveness and when you type very fast,” asked Dr. Yong.

Based on a survey conducted in the UK, the numbers are quite alarming:



Dr Yong agreed that not many people know about the existence of this problem, especially in Malaysia.

He suggeted for them to look for the symptoms such as ache, numbness and tingling, burning sensation and weakness in pinch and grip.



In Malaysia, Dr Yong said that those who are prone to this disease are young professional in their 30s, especially women.

"I'm not sure if women are more active on social media and if they like to text more," he added.

Dr Yong explained further that as we get older, our thumb is not as mobile and our neck gets stiffer:


As many may not even know about this disease to begin with, many tend to ignore the problem. Are our gadgets to blame for this worrying disease?

“Smartphones are 'smart', it’s only the people who are not smart. They dont listen to their body. They need some rest.

Some of the basic treatments include getting rest, medication and wearing a splint.

In this final video, Dr Yong provided handy tips on preventions.