Neck Pain Musculoskeletal
Conditions
Brief summary
To investigate the effect of body mind exercise and specific neck exercises in chronic mechanical neck pain on neck pain severity, functional disability, neck flexion range of motion, isometric neck muscle strength and quality of life.
Detailed description
Chronic mechanical neck pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal disorders affecting middle-aged and older adults and is associated with pain, reduced cervical mobility, functional disability, and decreased quality of life. Exercise therapy is widely recommended as a first-line conservative treatment for chronic neck pain. Previous studies have shown that both specific neck exercises and general physical activity can reduce pain and improve functional outcomes. Body-mind exercises, which combine physical movement with focused attention and breathing control, may provide additional benefits by improving both physical and psychological aspects of chronic pain. However, the comparative effectiveness of body-mind exercises and specific neck exercises when combined with conventional physical therapy remains unclear. The aim of this randomized controlled trial is to investigate the effect of body-mind exercises and specific neck exercises on pain intensity, functional disability, cervical range of motion, isometric neck muscle strength, and quality of life in individuals with chronic mechanical neck pain. A total of 80 participants aged 50 to 65 years with chronic mechanical neck pain will be recruited and randomly allocated into four groups using a parallel-group design. Group A will receive conventional physical therapy alone. Group B will receive conventional physical therapy combined with body-mind exercises in the form of mindful aerobic treadmill walking. Group C will receive conventional physical therapy combined with specific cervical and scapular stabilization exercises. Group D will receive a combination of conventional physical therapy, body-mind exercises, and specific neck exercises. All interventions will be performed over a treatment period of six weeks. Outcome measures will include pain intensity measured by the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS), functional disability assessed by the Neck Disability Index (NDI), cervical range of motion measured using a Cervical Range of Motion (CROM) device, isometric neck muscle strength measured using a handheld dynamometer, and quality of life assessed using the RAND-36 Health Survey. Measurements will be taken before the intervention and after completion of the six-week treatment period. The results of this study will help determine the most effective exercise approach for improving clinical outcomes in patients with chronic mechanical neck pain and may provide evidence to guide physical therapy practice.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALConventional physical therapy group.
conventional therapy which includes: heat therapy (infrared) for 10 minutes, massage therapy 10 min, stretching of neck (Scalene, SCM, UFT, Levator scapulae) and pectoral muscles 20 min.
BEHAVIORALBody mind exercises group (mindful aerobic exercises)
Group B will receive conventional physical therapy (infrared, massage, and neck stretching) in addition to Body mind exercises (mindful aerobic exercises). The aerobic exercise will be performed at an intensity of at least 60% of maximal oxygen consumption (VO₂ max) to effectively improve cardiorespiratory fitness. The program will include treadmill walking 30 minutes.
BEHAVIORALspecific neck exercise group
Group C will receive conventional therapy in addition to specific neck exercises. Specific exercises will include: cervical and scapular stabilization exercises.
BEHAVIORALCombined exercise group.
Group D will receive conventional therapy in addition to mindful aerobic exercises, cervical and scapular stabilization exercises.
Sponsors
Cairo University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Masking description
Due to the nature of the exercise interventions, participants and treating therapists cannot be blinded. However, the outcome assessor responsible for measuring pain, cervical range of motion, and neck muscle strength will be blinded to group allocation to reduce measurement bias.
Intervention model description
This study is a randomized, parallel-group, controlled clinical trial with four intervention arms. Participants with chronic mechanical neck pain will be randomly allocated into one of four groups receiving different combinations of body-mind exercises, specific neck exercises, and conventional physical therapy.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
50 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Adults aged between 50-65 years * Diagnosis of chronic mechanical neck pain (pain duration ≥ 3 months) * Pain intensity of at least 3/10 on the NPRS
Exclusion criteria
* History of cervical surgery * Specific neck conditions (fractures, neoplasm, infection) * Pregnancy * Severe cardiopulmonary disease or other systemic illness affecting participation
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Pain Intensity | (pre-intervention) and after 6 weeks (post-intervention). | Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NPRS, Arabic version) 0-10 scale; validated for Arabic-speaking populations (Alghadir et al., 2016) |
| Quality of Life Measured by RAND-36 Health Survey | (pre-intervention) and after 6 weeks (post-intervention). | Measures physical, emotional, and social functioning . |
| Functional Disability | (pre-intervention) and after 6 weeks (post-intervention). | Neck Disability Index (NDI, Arabic version) 10-item questionnaire. |
| Cervical ROM | (pre-intervention) and after 6 weeks (post-intervention). | CROM device. Measures flexion, extension, lateral flexion, rotation; 3 repetitions per movement (Kiatkulanusorn et al., 2023). |
| Isometric Neck Strength | (pre-intervention) and after 6 weeks (post-intervention). | Handheld dynamometer (HHD) Flexion (forehead), Extension (occiput), 3 maximal contractions of 5 sec each, average recorded (Ghamkhar et al., 2011) |
Countries
Egypt
Contacts
CONTACTRAMY I KOMIR, MSc
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORRAMY I KOMIR, MSc
Cairo University
Outcome results
None listed