Impact of Mobile Phone usage on Academic Performance and Behaviour of Medical Students

Background: Mobile phone culture has brought about a revolution in technology and people of all age groups (especially youngsters) have become greatly dependant on mobiles for various reasons. It has become an integral part of routine work of students who rely on mobiles for academic purposes also. This study was planned to evaluate the impact of mobile phone use on health and academic performance of MBBS students. Methods: It was cross sectional questionnaire based study in which 300 MBBS students were involved. Various questions regarding mobile usage, associated benefits and problems pertaining to academic activities and impact on health were filled and tabulated in ranges and percentages. Results: All the students involved in study used mobile phones and their usage ranged from 0.2-6.5 hrs on a working day and0.5-8 hrs on holiday. Many students reported increased academic performance with the help of mobiles whereas few students reported disturbance in class, impaired concentration and increased use of abbreviations in routine. Also, students reported certain health issues like changes in vision, pain in wrist, neck and preference to stay alone with use of mobile phones. Conclusions: Excessive use of mobile phones can have deleterious effects on human mind and brain. Plethora of physical, psychological and behavioural problems can be seen with long term use of handsets. With advancements in technologies, associated risks are also bound to increase. So judicious and wise use of mobiles is a must to avoid harmful consequences in youngsters especially students.