An observational study in Mechanical Neck Pain, Forward Head Posture (FHP), Upper Cross Syndrome (UCS), sponsored by Cairo University. Recruiting at 1 site in Egypt. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 25 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-10-16.
Sponsored by Cairo University · Observational
This study explores the relationship between smartphone overuse and mechanical neck pain among university students offers key value for health promotion in academic settings by developing targeted strategies and preventive measures to reduce neck pain. It equips healthcare professionals and educators with evidence-based recommendations.
This study to investigate the association between smartphone overuse and mechanical neck pain severity among Galala University students aged 18-24 years. In addition, exploring the factors linked to smartphone usage and neck pain, and how these factors affect neck pain intensity.
Thirty-six participants aged 18-25 years diagnosed with mechanical neck pain caused by daily smartphone overuse will be recruited. Their neck pain intensity will be evaluated using 11-point Numerical Rating Scale (NRS-11). Smartphone addiction risk will be assessed using Smartphone Application-based Addiction Scale (SABAS). An in-person clinical testing will be performed to evaluate the participants' cervical muscles endurance using Cervical Flexor Muscle Endurance (CFME) Test.
Phase 1 of the study will be a digital screening survey, and Phase 2 will be an in-person physical evaluation of cervical muscular endurance.
37 studies on the registry are indexed under Oculocerebral hypopigmentation syndrome type Preus; 20 are open to participants now.
Browse Oculocerebral hypopigmentation syndrome type Preus studies →Cairo University is the lead sponsor of 4,907 studies on the registry; 1,445 are open to participants now.
Of its 37 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 5 (14%) have results posted.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
A sample size of 36 participants will be established based on a prior power analysis using G*Power software for a Pearson correlation test (effect size = 0.43, á= 0.05, power = 0.80). Thus, 36 male and female students between the ages of 18 and 25 will be selected from Galala University as a convenience sample.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Undergraduate students, who have mechanical neck pain for at least three months and actively used smartphones every day and will be able to safely assume a supine position without severe discomfort.
Exclusion Criteria:
Undergraduate students with a history of cervical spine surgery, severe neck or shoulder trauma, diagnosed neurological disorders, or any musculoskeletal or cardiorespiratory disease requiring hospital admission in the past year will be excluded to ensure data validity (Elvan et al., 2024). Additionally, students who will be actively using drugs that are known to alter posture or musculoskeletal discomfort (such as sedatives or analgesic medicines) or who will having an acute episode of neck pain on the day of the evaluation will be excluded.
A sample size of 36 participants established based on a prior power analysis using G\*Power software for a Pearson correlation test (effect size = 0.43, α= 0.05, power = 0.80). Thus, 36 male and female students between the ages of 18 and 25 will be selected from Galala University. Inclusion Criteria: undergraduate students with mechanical neck pain for at least three months and actively used smartphones every day and will be able to safely assume a supine position without severe discomfort. Exclusion Criteria: Students with a history of cervical spine surgery, severe neck or shoulder trauma, diagnosed neurological disorders, or any musculoskeletal or cardiorespiratory disease requiring hospital admission in the past year will be excluded to ensure data validity (Elvan et al., 2024). Additionally, students who will be actively using drugs that are known to alter posture or musculoskeletal discomfort (such as sedatives or analgesic medicines).
Evaluation of Neck Pain Intensity
The Arabic version of the 11-point Numerical Rating Scale (NRS-11) will be used to gauge the degree of neck pain. The range of the scale is 0 ("No pain") to 10 ("Very much pain"). In Arabic-speaking populations, the translated Arabic NRS-11 has shown a high test-retest reliability of 0.86 and significant construct validity (Finianos et al., 2022).
Time frame: Three weeks
Assessment of Smartphone Addiction Risk
The Arabic version of the Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale (SABAS) will be used to assess the risk of smartphone addiction. Using a 6-point Likert scale (from 1 = strongly disagree to 6 = strongly agree), this short, 6-item test evaluates the fundamental characteristics of addiction. The total score ranges from 6 to 36. Particularly among university students who know Arabic, this Arabic adaption demonstrates acceptable internal consistency and convergent validity (Vally \& Alowais, 2022).
Time frame: Three weeks
Cervical Flexor Muscle Endurance (CFME)
The individual will be placed in a supine, crook-lying position to test their deep cervical flexor endurance. The participants will be told to raise their heads about 2.5 cm off the plinth while doing a craniocervical flexion, sometimes known as a chin tuck. The test will be timed in seconds and ended if the participant's head touched the examiner's hand for more than a second or if the chin's skin folds split (Elvan et al., 2024). The established normative baseline values for healthy young adults using this protocol are 39 seconds for males and 29 seconds for females (Domenech et al., 2011).
Time frame: Three weeks
Documents are hosted by the registry — open the source record to download them.
Plan to share: No — According to the ethics requirements prior to participation, each subject will be given a digital consent after being informed of the study's objectives. A written informed consent form will be signed by each participant before any assessment will be taken place. All data will be collected and will be stored confidentially, with participant identities will be replaced by coded identifiers in the dataset.
Started Jun 2026 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Nov 2026, 5 months after the start.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
Eligibility is decided by the study team. Share this record with your doctor or contact the team directly.
No contact was published for this record. The registry link below has the sponsor’s details.
Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.
Oculocerebral hypopigmentation syndrome type Preus →