Smartphone Use on Accommodation and Vergence Parameters: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Introduction: The frequency and the trend of smartphone use increase rapidly, and 85% of Malaysians owns a smartphone and spend an average of 187 minutes per day to use the smartphone. Aims: To evaluate the potential effects of smartphone use on Accommodation and Vergence of the users. Methods: A total of 18 articles were selected in this review following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines, and the research question was formulated based on the population, intervention, control, and outcomes (PICO) method. This review was registered with PROSPERO (reference number: CRD42022293325). Data Sources: Databases namely PubMed, Web of Science, and Science-Direct were used in the article search using appropriate keywords, phrases, and Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms. The inclusion criteria of this review were journal articles published from January 2010 until December 2021 with full articles or abstract in English available. Results: Accommodative function has been reported to changed significantly with 20 minutes of smartphone use, with reduced amplitude, facility, relative and increased lag. In addition, vergence function has been reported to be altered significantly with receded near point of convergence. Conclusion: Smartphone use has an effect on the accommodation and vergence parameters among adults. Assessments of accommodation and vergence parameters need to be conducted in patients with the symptoms of Computer Vision Syndrome to prevent vision problems. Future reviews are required in younger cohorts with various smartphone features.