Effects of Android phone vs. iPhone use on BlackBerry thumb symptoms among university students in Bangladesh

Abstract Background In Bangladesh, the most prevalent musculoskeletal condition among office employees is considered as BlackBerry thumb (BBT). Alike official perspectives, our educational system was significantly regulating with the digital interfaces at COVID-19 lockdown, where a greater reliance on Android phones were experienced among the adults. Numerous studies have been conducted in studying the incidences of BBT in young individuals as a result of hazards of Android phone usage (HAPU) in Bangladesh. Objective This research sought to determine the relationship between BBT symptoms and the risks associated with the using Android phones among Bangladeshi university students. Methods A nationwide cross-sectional study was undertaken on a group of university students between the ages of 18 and 25 to determine if BBT symptoms were present based on the Finkelstein test and HAPU, which were also assessed using a well-designed questionnaire. We calculated the crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) and used a generalized linear model from the Poisson family, using their respective 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results There were 2455 individuals in this research, with a median age of 20 and an interquartile range (IQR) of 19 to 23. Of them, 1185 males (48.27%) and 1270 women (51.75%) made up the study’s participant population. Physical exams showed that 1300 individuals had positive Finkelstein test results (52.95%), whereas 1040 people had occasional risks from using an Android phone and 115 participants had occasional risks from using an iPhone. In our generalized linear model, we observed that participants with occasional and frequent HAPU had higher rates of BBT symptoms than responders without HAPU (aPR = 1.73, 95% CI: 1.47–2.05, and aPR = 1.61, 95% CI: 1.29–2.00), respectively. Conclusion The current study found that Bangladeshi university students experiencing BlackBerry thumb symptoms were more likely to have risks associated with using Android phones