Background: Smartphones play a critical role in increasing human–machine interactions, with many advantages. However, the growing popularity of smartphone use has led to smartphone overuse and addiction. This review aims to systematically investigate the impact of smartphone addiction on health outcomes. Methods: The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were used to carry out the systematic review. Five electronic databases including Medline, Web of Science, PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus were searched to identify eligible studies. Eligible studies were screened against predetermined inclusion criteria and data were extracted according to the review questions. This review is registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020181404). The quality of the articles was assessed using the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Quality Assessment Tool for Observational Cohort and Cross-Sectional Studies. Results: A total of 27 of 2550 articles met the inclusion criteria. All of the studies were cross-sectional and focused on physical, mental, and neurological health outcomes. The majority of the studies focused on mental health outcomes and consistent associations were observed between smartphone addiction and several mental health outcomes. Anxiety and depression were commonly found to mediate mental health problems. A wide range of physical health sequelae was also associated with smartphone addiction. Furthermore, there was an association between smartphone addiction and neurological disorders. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that there are consistent associations between smartphone addiction and physical and mental health, especially mental health. Social awareness campaigns about smartphone addiction and its impact on physical and mental health are needed. Further studies, especially randomized controlled trials, are warranted to validate the impacts of smartphone addiction.

Smartphone Addiction and Associated Health Outcomes in Adult Populations: A Systematic Review

Abstract Background and aims Individuals with schizophrenia may often experience poor sleep, self-stigma, impaired social functions, and problematic smartphone use. However, the temporal relationships between these factors have not been investigated. The present study used a longitudinal design to examine potential mediating roles of poor sleep and self-stigma in associations between problematic smartphone use and impaired social functions among individuals with schizophrenia. Methods From April 2019 to August 2021, 193 individuals with schizophrenia (mean [SD] age = 41.34 [9.01] years; 88 [45.6%] males) were recruited and asked to complete three psychometric scales: the Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale to assess problematic smartphone use; the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index to assess sleep quality; and the Self-Stigma Scale-Short Scale to assess self-stigma. Social functioning was evaluated by a psychiatrist using the Personal and Social Performance Scale. All measures were assessed five times (one baseline and four follow-ups) at three-month intervals between assessments. Results General estimating equations found that problematic smartphone use (coefficient = −0.096, SE = 0.021; P < 0.001), sleep quality (coefficient = −0.134, SE = 0.038; P < 0.001), and self-stigma (coefficient = −0.612, SE = 0.192; P = 0.001) were significant statistical predictors for social functioning. Moreover, sleep quality and self-stigma mediated associations between problematic smartphone use and social functioning. Conclusion Problematic smartphone use appears to impact social functioning longitudinally among individuals with schizophrenia via poor sleep and self-stigma concerns. Interventions aimed at reducing problematic smartphone use, improving sleep, and addressing self-stigma may help improve social functioning among individuals with schizophrenia.

https://akjournals.com/downloadpdf/journals/2006/aop/article-10.1556-2006.2022.00012/article-10.1556-2006.2022.00012.pdf

A longitudinal study of the effects of problematic smartphone use on social functioning among people with schizophrenia: Mediating roles for sleep quality and self-stigma

Internet addiction among the elderly is a novel issue in many countries. However, extant research about excessive use of the Internet is focusing on adolescents and younger adults. There are few studies to explore the topic of the elderly's Internet addiction. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between real-life social support and Internet addiction among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. This article adopted a self-reported questionnaire via internet links to collect data. A total of 303 valid samples about Internet addiction for the elderly were obtained in China. The results suggested that real-life social support is significantly and negatively related to Internet addiction among the aged. Moreover, the findings revealed that real-life social support could mitigate Internet addiction by increasing the levels of hopefulness and decreasing the feeling of loneliness. We expect that this study can enrich the understanding of the problematic Internet usage within older populations. Finally, the contributions, practical significance, and limitations of this study were discussed.

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The relationship between real-life social support and Internet addiction among the elderly in China

An updated of meta-analysis on the relationship between mobile phone addiction and sleep disorder.

Background Prior studies have revealed the relationships between impulsivity and social media addiction (SMA) and between impulsivity and problematic smartphone use (PSU) based on total scores on standardized self-report scales. However, there has been a lack of studies exploring how the dimensions of impulsivity and components of SMA or PSU are interrelated. The present study aimed to investigate the structural relationships between the dimensions of impulsivity and components of SMA and PSU and determine the critical bridge node using network analysis. Methods A total of 325 healthy adults aged 18–36 years participated in the study. SMA and PSU were assessed using the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS) and Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale (SABAS), respectively. Impulsivity was measured by the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale Version 11 (BIS-11). Network analysis was used to construct an SMA-Impulsivity network and a PSU-Impulsivity network. Bridge centrality (bridge expected influence, BEI) was estimated to identify influential bridge nodes. Results In addition to relationships within each community, network analysis revealed that the dimensions of impulsivity were closely associated with the components of SMA and PSU. Particularly, I2 “motor impulsivity” had a relatively strong connection with SMA3 “mood modification” and SMA4 “relapse” in the SMA-Impulsivity network, and with PSU2 “conflict” and PSU5 “withdrawal” in the PSU-Impulsivity network. Moreover, I2 “motor impulsivity” was identified as the most critical bridge node in both networks. Conclusion These findings demonstrate potential pathways between different dimensions of impulsivity and the components of SMA and PSU, providing new evidence relevant to understanding the underlying mechanisms that account for how highly impulsive individuals develop SMA and PSU, and highlight the critical bridge node—motor impulsivity—that may be a promising and effective target for the prevention and treatment of SMA and PSU.

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Applying network analysis to understand the relationships between impulsivity and social media addiction and between impulsivity and problematic smartphone use

Over the past two decades, smartphones have become common, and the accompanying devices have also become much more popular and easily accessible worldwide. With the development of smartphones, accompanied by internet facilities, excessive smartphone use or smartphone addiction may cause sleep disturbance and daily dysfunction. This study proposed examining the association between personality traits and smartphone addiction and its effects on sleep disturbance. Four hundred and twenty-two university participants (80 male and 342 female participants) with a mean age of 20.22 years old were recruited in this study. All participants were asked to complete the following questionnaires: Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI), Tri-dimensional personality questionnaire (TPQ), and Chinese Pittsburgh Sleep Questionnaire Index (CPSQI). The results showed that people with a high tendency toward novelty seeking (NS) as a personality trait, compared to those with lower tendency toward NS, are more likely to become addicted to smartphone use. Moreover, those with a stronger trait of being NS and specific impulsivity factor were found to have higher total scores in the SPAI (p < 0.05). In addition, linear regression analysis showed that the individuals with higher scores for withdrawal symptoms on the SPAI and anticipatory worry factor on the TPQ tended to have higher CPSQI total scores (p < 0.05). This information may be useful for prevention in individuals with personality traits making them vulnerable to smartphone addiction and for designing intervention programs to reduce intensive smartphone use and programs to increase capability in managing smartphone use.

An Investigation into Smartphone Addiction with Personality and Sleep Quality among University Students

Addiction is characterized by drug-craving, compulsive drug-taking, and relapse, and results from the interaction between multiple genetic and environmental factors. Reward pathways play an important role in mediating drug-seeking and drug-taking behaviors, and relapse. The objective of this study was to identify heroin addicts who carry specific genetic variants in their dopaminergic reward systems. A total of 326 heroin-dependent patients undergoing methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) were recruited from the Addiction Center of the China Medical University Hospital. A heroin-use and craving questionnaire was used to evaluate the urge for heroin, the daily or weekly frequency of heroin usage, daily life disturbance, anxiety, and the ability to overcome heroin use. A general linear regression model was used to assess the associations of genetic polymorphisms in one’s dopaminergic reward system with heroin-use and craving scores. Results: The most significant results were obtained for rs2240158 in GRIN3B (p = 0.021), rs3983721 in GRIN3A (p = 0.00326), rs2129575 in TPH2 (p = 0.033), rs6583954 in CYP2C19 (p = 0.033), and rs174699 in COMT (p = 0.036). These were all associated with heroin-using and craving scores with and without adjustments for age, sex, and body mass index. We combined five variants, and the ensuing dose-response effect indicated that heroin-craving scores increased with the numbers of risk alleles (p for trend = 0.0008). These findings will likely help us to understand the genetic mechanism of craving, which will help in predicting the risk of relapse in clinical practice and the potential for therapies to target craving in heroin addiction.

Risk Assessment for Heroin Use and Craving Score Using Polygenic Risk Score.

Withdrawal syndromes and symptoms are treated using methadone and a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), providing reduced dosing and liability in methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) for opiate addiction by inhibiting estrogen signaling.

Methods and compositions for treating withdrawal syndrome

Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) remains the cornerstone for the management of opiate abuse. However, MMT can be associated with complex factors, including complications during the tolerance phase, the inability of some patients to maintain treatment effects during the tapering or abstinence phases, and the development of methadone dependence. Previous studies have revealed a sex disparity in MMT efficacy, showing that women undergoing MMT experiencing an increase in psychological symptoms compared with men and suggesting a link between disparate responses and the effects of estrogen signaling on methadone metabolism. More specifically, estradiol levels are positively associated with MMT dosing, and the expression of a single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) associated with estrogen receptor (ER) regulation is also associated with MMT dosing. In addition to performing mechanistic dissections of estrogen signaling in the presence of methadone, past studies have also proposed the targeting of estrogen signaling during MMT. The present report provides an overview of the relevant literature regarding sex effects, including differences in sex hormones and their potential impacts on MMT regimens. Moreover, this article provides a pharmacological perspective on the targeting of estrogen signals through the use of selective ER modulators (SERMs) during MMT. Preliminary preclinical experiments were also performed to evaluate the potential effects of targeting estrogen signaling with tamoxifen on methadone metabolism.

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Chieh-Liang Huang

Papers

An Investigation into Smartphone Addiction with Personality and Sleep Quality among University Students

Risk Assessment for Heroin Use and Craving Score Using Polygenic Risk Score.

Methods and compositions for treating withdrawal syndrome

Add-On Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators for Methadone Maintenance Treatment