Dr. Dean Fishman had his “ah-ha” moment talking to the mother of a young patient in his office in Plantation, Fla.
As the patient was sitting in the corner of the exam room, typing away on her phone with her head hung low and her body basically curled up into a ball, Fishman was giving her mother a clinical diagnosis. When he was explaining her daughters loss of a normal cervical curve the term just came out- “Text Neck”.
“The patient’s mother had a visceral reaction, sat up straight and started speaking very matter-of-factly about her daughters texting habits,” said Fishman.
After determining a schedule of care for the patient that included exercises and changing the angle at which the patient viewed here phone he realized he was on to something.
“This patient was a great patient because the term text neck made sense to her.”
He did case studies on 10 patients in his office, taking them through a care plan that included pre and post x-rays, digital muscle testing, and range-of-motion testing. The Text Neck Institute was born.
“I want to teach my patients to live with mobile technology,” said Fishman.
In text neck has turned into a practice builder for Fishman, whose reported a 30% growth in his practice and well as developing a smartphone app to monitor his patients progress.
The $2.99 app (currently available in the Android Marketplace, an iPhone edition is coming soon) tracks the viewing angle of the phone and alerts the patient the angle is less than ideal. The app runs in the background as patients go about their daily tasks and alerts them regardless of the app they are currently running.
Check out the news coverage on CBS 6 in Miami, Fla.
June 9th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
I agree 100% and I am going to put the APP on my childs phone. I could see that she is already getting text neck.
June 9th, 2010 at 10:34 pm
What a great story!. . .This condition could also be named: “Computer Cervical Crunch” for the people who spend a great deal of time researching and typing on computers all crunched over. . . An app could me made that ‘spies’ on those people through their web cam. HA! We know the younger female generation have also developed the new shape to the human body better know as “muffin tops”. All in all I would consider it JOB SECURITY for all Chiropractors, since they’re the only ones who are going to be able to get them out of the mess they’ve made of their bodies with cell phones. As for the ‘muffin tops’, HCG MAX is my suggestion!
June 10th, 2010 at 9:36 am
I have had a stiff neck for years. I thought it was an old football injury, but I just realized that my neck hurts the most on days that I spend a lot of time on my phone texting. I need Dr. Fishman’s number.
June 10th, 2010 at 9:47 am
As I look at my son in the back of my car everyday, I am constantly reminding him to look straight ahead while playing with his portable game system or my phone. I can see that his flexed neck position over long periods can be detrimental to his young developing spine. This article is so important to give awareness to parents and children of what havoc prolonged flexion can have on future health.
June 10th, 2010 at 11:19 am
Being a new person to texting, I am so happy to be able to prevent “text neck” by availing myself of the wonderful app for my cell phone! Thanks, Dr. Fishman!!!
June 10th, 2010 at 12:50 pm
I have used the Text Neck application and can say that it really works. I always find myself hunched over my mobile devices, and this little app is the perfect reminder on my Android phone. But I didn’t stop there, I have made my 15 year old son pay attention to his own posture by putting the same app on his android phone. Every now and then I’ll check his “Text Neck Score” to make sure he’s paying attention. The last thing I want is for him to have spine-related issues in 20 years.
I highly recommend it to anyone that cares about their health.
June 10th, 2010 at 2:51 pm
This information is right on target. I was in a movie theater last week, waiting for the movie to start, and I noticed that probably 80% of the people in the theater were entertaining themselves, during this lag time, by being hunched over their mobile phones reading or texting. I became aware that I used to do the same thing, until I heard about “text neck” and became aware of the APP. It’s amazing how something I had never even thought about before has impacted the way I feel. I wish I knew about this a long time ago, but it’s never too late. Whenever I’m in a crowd, I look around and see the text neck syndrome all around me. Now, you too, will see it. Thank you Dr. Fishman for your knowledge and your ah-ha moment! Your text-neck APP is great.
June 10th, 2010 at 3:31 pm
wonderful article. informative and useful.
June 10th, 2010 at 8:13 pm
This makes absolute sense! My kids are too young for texting but their gameboys cause the same result. After reading this article we became more aware of their posture when playing these handheld devices and we are now looking for a Chiropractor that treats textneck patients. Great Article!
June 10th, 2010 at 11:32 pm
Thank you for shedding light on this important matter….really good stuff.
June 11th, 2010 at 11:00 am
Parents everywhere should be concerned about this condition. The word needs to get out about what we can do to help prevent it.
June 13th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
I am very new to texting and I appreciate the information from Dr. Fishman so I can prevent text neck! I am ordering the app immediately!
June 14th, 2010 at 1:38 pm
Great article! I see people texting with their head hung low all day long, and this research makes sense. I will definitely change my own texting habits and have my family do the same. I hope to see more text-neck research in the future.
December 5th, 2010 at 1:44 pm
I don’t get text neck from texting, but I do spend a lot of time on the computer and also suffer from lower back spasms.
About 9 months ago I started using whole body vibration and this has helped me tremendously. The vibration exercise machine helps to relax my neck, shoulders and back muscles in just a few minutes.
The added bonus after using this machine for a few months is that I lost 35 lbs, tightened, toned and strengthened my leg muscles, got rid of cellulite and feel great.
You can check out my testimonial at http://www.vibrafitbody.com and see the benefits I have gotten.