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Investigation of the Effectiveness of Manual Therapy Plus Cervical Stabilization Exercise in Chronic Neck Pain

Investigation of the Effectiveness of Manual Therapy Plus Cervical Stabilization Exercise on Balance, Proprioception, and Neck Muscle Morphology in Chronic Neck Pain

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04420403
Enrollment
20
Registered
2020-06-09
Start date
2020-05-20
Completion date
2021-06-24
Last updated
2022-01-04

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Neck Pain

Keywords

neck pain, manual therapy, exercise, postural control

Brief summary

This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of manual therapy plus cervical stabilization exercise compared to manual therapy alone on balance, proprioception, and neck muscle morphology in chronic neck pain.

Detailed description

Neck pain is defined as pain and/or stiffness localized to the dorsal area of the area between the condyle of the occiput and the third thoracic vertebra. Chronic neck pain (CNP), defined as persistent pain lasting three or more mounts, causes disability and a reduction in life quality. Balance disorders or postural instability, a deficit in proprioception, changes in muscle recruitment, a decrease in dimension of deep cervical muscle, and an increase in stiffness of superficial neck muscle may lead to pain in patients with CNP. Both manual therapy and exercise have favorable effects on management with CNP. According to our knowledge, no study has investigated the effects of manual therapy plus cervical stabilization exercise on balance, proprioception, and neck muscle morphology in CNP, yet.

Interventions

OTHERManual Therapy

Cyriax's mobilization techniques will be applied as manual therapy. Before the mobilization, soft tissue mobilization techniques will be applied to relieve muscular spasm and preventing the patient' s anxiety. Bringing, manual traction, manual traction with rotation, manual traction with anterior-posterior gliding and lateral gliding mobilization techniques will be applied. Appropriate mobility techniques will be selected according to the complaints and symptoms of the patients. Cervical mobilization applications will take an average of 15-20 minutes.

OTHERCervical Stabilazation Exercise (CSE)

The CSE program aims to maintain a neutral spine position and activate deep cervical muscles during exercises. It is performed in stages with gradual progression according to the stages of motor learning and sensory-motor integration, namely, static, dynamic, and functional. The program will start with postural training and then the cervical bracing technique with the activation of deep neck flexors for CSE was performed. The patients will be asked to maintain a neutral spine during the exercises and throughout the day as much as possible. The difficulty and variety of exercises will be increased weekly. It will be carried out 2 days a week for 6 weeks (12 sessions) by the supervisor physiotherapist.

Sponsors

Ataturk Training and Research Hospital
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)

Intervention model description

Participants were randomly assigned to manual therapy plus cervical stabilization exercise group (intervention group) and only the manual therapy group (control group).

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 55 Years
Healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

* 20 to 55 years of age, * Having generalized neck pain for more than 3 months, * Being volunteer

Exclusion criteria

* Being pregnant, * Malignancy, * Having cervical stenosis, * Severe cervical spondylosis, * Cervical fractures and tumor, * Osteoporosis, * Positive vertebrobasilar test * Positive Babinski reflex * Neurologic deficit related to compression of the spinal root or cord, * Having neurologic, dermatologic, infectious, inflammatory rheumatologic and endocrine diseases, * Being an inability to fulfill the questionnaires, * Any problems that will hinder exercise (advanced cardiopulmonary or orthopedic problems), having intervention including exercise program or physiotherapy in the three months

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Balancechange from baseline at 6 weeksThe balance will be evaluated with Biodex BioSwayTM Balance Evaluation System. It reliably measures the patient's ability to balance on soft and/or hard ground.

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Proprioceptionchange from baseline at 6 weeksProprioception will be assessed with dual digital inclinometer. The feet of the inclinometers will be placed as simultaneously as possible over the head of the patients and the cervical seventh vertebra. Firstly, patients will be asked to move their heads forward as possible as from the neutral position and then they will try to find neutral position from reached position. The angle on digital display of inclinometer will be recorded as degree. Each test will be repeated 3 times and the average deviation error score will be recorded.
Muscle morphologychange from baseline at 6 weeksThe thickness and stiffness of the neck muscles will be evaluated by a specialist radiologist with real-time ultrasonography. It is a reliable, valid and, non-invasive method that provides an assessment of muscle morphology. Measurements will be made by using the Logiq S7 / Expert ultrasound device. The cross-sectional area of deep neck muscle with sonography, the stiffness of the superficial muscles with elastography were assessed.
Pain intensitychange from baseline at 6 weeksThe pain intensity will be assessed with the Visual Analog Scale, which consists of a horizontal line of 10 cm in length. For pain level assessment, 0 defines no pain and 10 defines unbearable pain''. The participants will be asked to mark the intensity of their pain level.
Disability levelchange from baseline at 6 weeksThe disability level will be measured with the Turkish version of Neck Disability Index (NDI). It consists of 10 sections which include the severity of pain, personal care, lifting, reading, headache, concentration, work-life, driving, sleeping and leisure activities. There are 6 responses for each section, scored 0 (no pain and no functional limitation) and 5 (worst pain and maximum limitation). The total score ranges from 0 to 50. Patients will be asked to select the most appropriate option for each section.

Countries

Turkey (Türkiye)

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026