Ultrasound-Guided Miniscalpel-Needle Release versus Dry Needling for Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background. We need to understand more about how DNF performs in different contexts and whether it affects the pain threshold over myofascial trigger points (MTrPs). Purpose. The objectives were to investigate the effect of neck muscles training on disability and pain and on pain threshold over MTrPs in people with chronic neck pain. Methods. Patients with chronic neck pain were eligible for participation with a Neck Disability Index (NDI) score of over 5/50 and having at least one MTrP on either levator scapulae, upper trapezoid, or splenius capitis muscle. Patients were randomly assigned into either DNF training, superficial neck muscle exercise, or advice group. Generalized linear model (GLM) was used to detect differences in treatment groups over time. Results. Out of 67 participants, 60 (47 females, mean age: 39.45 ± 12.67) completed the study. Neck disability and neck pain were improved over time between and within groups (p<0.05). However, no differences were found within and between the therapeutic groups (p<0.05) in the tested muscles’ PPTs and in cervicothoracic angle over a 7-week period. Conclusion. All three groups improved over time. This infers that the pain pathways involved in the neck pain relief are not those involved in pain threshold.

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The effect of giving verbal feedback during neck stabilisation exercise as an addition to physical therapy in patients with chronic neck pain: A randomised controlled trial

Clinical Rehabilitation ◽

10.1177/02692155211044138 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 026921552110441

Author(s):

Yi-Jia Lin ◽

Wei-Chun Hsu ◽

Lin-Fen Hsieh ◽

Kae-Chwen Chang ◽

Ying-Chen Kuo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Physical Therapy ◽

Neck Pain ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Chronic Neck Pain ◽

Group A ◽

Group B ◽

Randomised Controlled ◽

Neck Disability

Objectives To study the addition of feedback-guided neck strength home exercise to physical therapy as an enhanced rehabilitation programme in the treatment of patients with chronic neck pain. Design A prospective randomised controlled trial. Setting Rehabilitation department of an academic hospital. Subjects Patients with chronic neck pain. Interventions The patients in both groups received supervised physical therapy sessions 3 times a week for 12 weeks. Patients in Group A ( N = 38) used the neck strengthening exerciser device for 20 min daily at home for 6 weeks and patients in Group B ( N = 20) performed 20 min of daily regular neck exercise at home for 6 weeks. Outcome measures Neck disability index, pain visual analogue scale, active range of motion of the neck, Patient Global Assessment and patient evaluation of treatment effect. All subjects were assessed at baseline as well as at 6- and 12-week follow-ups. Results At the 6-week follow-up, Group A exhibited significantly greater improvements ( P < 0.05) in pain Visual Analogue Scale (Group A: 2.97 ± 1.57; Group B: 4.20 ± 1.82), neck disability index (Group A: 13.95 ± 8.07; Group B: 20.07 ± 9.14) and active cervical extension (Group A: 65.26 ± 12.76; Group B: 51.45 ± 11.78). At 12-week follow-up, Group A also exhibited significantly greater active cervical extension (Group A: 67.74 ± 11.94; Group B: 53.85 ± 14.09; P < 0.05). Conclusion Adding neck strengthening exerciser home training to physical therapy was demonstrated to be more effective than physical therapy alone for patients with chronic neck pain.

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Does Upper Cervical Manual Therapy Provide Additional Benefit in Disability and Mobility over a Physiotherapy Primary Care Program for Chronic Cervicalgia? A Randomized Controlled Trial

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17228334 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (22) ◽

pp. 8334

Author(s):

Vanessa González-Rueda ◽

César Hidalgo-García ◽

Jacobo Rodríguez-Sanz ◽

Elena Bueno-Gracia ◽

Albert Pérez-Bellmunt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Neck Pain ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Chronic Neck Pain ◽

Control Group ◽

Upper Cervical Spine ◽

Rotation Test ◽

Upper Cervical ◽

Neck Disability ◽

Therapy Protocol

Introduction: Neck pain is a condition with a high incidence in primary care. Patients with chronic neck pain often experience reduction in neck mobility. However, no study to date has investigated the effects of manual mobilization of the upper cervical spine in patients with chronic mechanical neck pain and restricted upper cervical rotation. Objective: To evaluate the effect of adding an upper cervical translatoric mobilization or an inhibitory suboccipital technique to a conventional physical therapy protocol in patients with chronic neck pain test on disability and cervical range of motion. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Methods: Seventy-eight patients with chronic neck pain and restricted upper cervical rotation were randomized in three groups: Upper cervical translatoric mobilization group, inhibitory suboccipital technique group, or control group. The neck disability index, active cervical mobility, and the flexion–rotation test were assessed at baseline (T0), after the treatment (T1), and at three-month follow-up (T2). Results: There were no statistically significant differences between groups in neck disability index. The upper cervical translatoric mobilization group showed a significant increase in the flexion–rotation test to the more restricted side at T1 (F = 5.992; p < 0.004) and T2 (F = 5.212; p < 0.007) compared to the control group. The inhibitory suboccipital technique group showed a significant increase in the flexion–rotation test to the less restricted side at T1 (F = 3.590; p < 0.027). All groups presented high percentages of negative flexion–rotation tests. (T1: 69.2% upper neck translator mobilization group; 38.5% suboccipital inhibition technique group, 19.2% control group; at T2: 80.8%; 46.2% and 26.9% respectively). No significant differences in the active cervical mobility were found between groups. Conclusion: Adding manual therapy to a conventional physical therapy protocol for the upper cervical spine increased the flexion–rotation test in the short- and mid-term in patients with chronic neck pain. No changes were found in the neck disability index and the global active cervical range of motion.

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A Novel Virtual Reality Technique (Cervigame®) Compared to Conventional Proprioceptive Training to Treat Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Journal of Biomedical Physics and Engineering ◽

10.31661/jbpe.v9i3jun.556 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (3Jun) ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

I Rezaei ◽

M Razeghi ◽

S Ebrahimi ◽

S Kayedi ◽

A Rezaeian Zadeh

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Visual Analogue Scale ◽

Neck Pain ◽

Analogue Scale ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Repeated Measure ◽

Balance Test ◽

Proprioceptive Training ◽

Neck Disability

Background: Despite the potential benefits of virtual reality technology in physical rehabilitation, only a few studies have evaluated the efficacy of this type of treatment in patients with neck pain.Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of virtual reality training (VRT) versus conventional proprioceptive training (CPT) in patients with neck pain.Methods: Forty four participants with nonspecific chronic neck pain were randomly assigned to VRT or CPT in this assessor-blinded clinical trial. A novel videogame called Cervigame® was designed for VRT. It comprises of 50 stages divided into unidirectional and two-directional stages ordered from easy to hard. CPT consisted of eye-follow, gaze stability, eye-head coordination and position and movement sense training. Both groups completed 8 training sessions over 4 weeks. Visual analogue scale score, neck disability index and Y-balance test results were recorded at baseline, immediately after and 5 weeks post-intervention. Mixed repeated measure ANOVA was used to analyze differences between mean values for each variable at an alpha level of 0.05.Results: There were significant improvements in all variables in both groups immediately after and 5 weeks after the intervention. Greater improvements were observed in the visual analogue scale and neck disability index scores in VRT group, and the results for all directions in Y-balance test were similar in both groups. No side effects were reported.Conclusion: Improvements in neck pain and disability were greater in VRT than CPT group. Cervigame® is a potentially practical tool for rehabilitation in patients with neck pain.

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A Novel Virtual Reality Technique (Cervigame®) Compared to Conventional Proprioceptive Training to Treat Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Journal of Biomedical Physics and Engineering ◽

10.31661/jbpe.v0i0.556 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

I Rezaei ◽

M Razeghi ◽

S Ebrahimi ◽

S Kayedi ◽

A Rezaeian Zadeh

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Visual Analogue Scale ◽

Neck Pain ◽

Analogue Scale ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Repeated Measure ◽

Balance Test ◽

Proprioceptive Training ◽

Neck Disability

Background: Despite the potential benefits of virtual reality technology in physical rehabilitation, only a few studies have evaluated the efficacy of this type of treatment in patients with neck pain.Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the effects of virtual reality training (VRT) versus conventional proprioceptive training (CPT) in patients with neck pain.Methods: Forty four participants with nonspecific chronic neck pain were randomly assigned to VRT or CPT in this assessor-blinded clinical trial. A novel videogame called Cervigame® was designed for VRT. It comprises of 50 stages divided into unidirectional and two-directional stages ordered from easy to hard. CPT consisted of eye-follow, gaze stability, eye-head coordination and position and movement sense training. Both groups completed 8 training sessions over 4 weeks. Visual analogue scale score, neck disability index and Y-balance test results were recorded at baseline, immediately after and 5 weeks post-intervention. Mixed repeated measure ANOVA was used to analyze differences between mean values for each variable at an alpha level of 0.05.Results: There were significant improvements in all variables in both groups immediately after and 5 weeks after the intervention. Greater improvements were observed in the visual analogue scale and neck disability index scores in VRT group, and the results for all directions in Y-balance test were similar in both groups. No side effects were reported.Conclusion: Improvements in neck pain and disability were greater in VRT than CPT group. Cervigame® is a potentially practical tool for rehabilitation in patients with neck pain.

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Effect of adding interferential current stimulation to exercise on outcomes in primary care patients with chronic neck pain: a randomized controlled trial

Clinical Rehabilitation ◽

10.1177/0269215519844554 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (9) ◽

pp. 1458-1467

Author(s):

Manuel Albornoz-Cabello ◽

José Manuel Pérez-Mármol ◽

Cristo Jesus Barrios Quinta ◽

Guillermo A Matarán-Peñarrocha ◽

Adelaida María Castro-Sánchez ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Neck Pain ◽

Analogue Scale ◽

Outcome Measure ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Core Outcome ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Interferential Current ◽

Core Outcome Measure ◽

Neck Disability

Objective: To evaluate the effect of adding interferential current stimulation to exercise on pain, disability, psychological status and range of motion in patients with neck pain. Design: A single-blinded randomized controlled trial. Setting: Primary care physiotherapy units. Subjects: A total of 84 patients diagnosed with non-specific mechanical neck pain. This sample was divided into two groups randomly: experimental ( n = 42) versus control group ( n = 42). Interventions: Patients in both groups had a supervised therapeutic exercise programme, with the experimental group having additional interferential current stimulation treatment. Main measures: The main measures used were intensity of neck pain according to the Visual Analogue Scale; the degree of disability according to the Neck Disability Index and the CORE Outcome Measure; anxiety and depression levels according to the Goldberg scale; apprehension as measured by the Personal Psychological Apprehension scale; and the range of motion of the cervical spine. The sample was evaluated at baseline and posttreatment (10 sessions/two weeks). Results: Statistically significant differences between groups at posttreatment were observed for Visual Analogue Scale (2.73 ± 1.24 vs 4.99 ± 1.56), Neck Disability Index scores (10.60 ± 4.77 vs 18.45 ± 9.04), CORE Outcome Measure scores (19.18 ± 9.99 vs 35.12 ± 13.36), Goldberg total score (6.17 ± 4.27 vs 7.90 ± 4.87), Goldberg Anxiety subscale, Personal Psychological Apprehension Scale scores (28.17 ± 9.61 vs 26.29 ± 11.14) and active and passive right rotation. Conclusions: Adding interferential current stimulation to exercise resulted in better immediate outcome across a range of measures.

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“Short- and mid-term effects of adding upper cervical manual therapy to a conventional physical therapy program in patients with chronic mechanical neck pain. Randomized controlled clinical trial.”

Clinical Rehabilitation ◽

10.1177/0269215520965054 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 026921552096505

Author(s):

Vanessa González-Rueda ◽

Carlos López-de-Celis ◽

Elena Bueno-Gracia ◽

Jacobo Rodríguez-Sanz ◽

Albert Pérez-Bellmunt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Neck Pain ◽

Rating Scale ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Neck Disability Index ◽

Chronic Neck Pain ◽

Control Group ◽

Controlled Clinical Trial ◽

Primary Care Center ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Upper Cervical

Objective: To evaluate the effect of adding an Upper Cervical Translatoric Mobilization (UCTM) or an Inhibitory Suboccipital Technique (IST) to a physiotherapy treatment in the symptomatology and function of mechanical chronic neck pain patients. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Setting: Primary Care Center in Cornellà, Spain. Subjects: 78 patients (64 women), with mean age (SD) of 59.96 (13.30) years with mechanical chronic neck pain were divided in three groups: control, IST and UCTM groups. Interventions: All groups received 15 physiotherapy sessions for three weeks. The UCTM and IST groups added 5 minutes of the assigned technique during six sessions. Main measures: Neck disability index (NDI) and numeric pain rating scale (NPRS) for neck pain were measured baseline, three-weeks and 15-weeks follow-up. Results: NDI (SD) at baseline, three-weeks and 15-weeks were 11.62 (7.08), 9.65 (6.25), 7.58 (5.64) for the control group, 14.38 (6.92), 8.50 (6.11), 7.12 (4.98) for the IST group and 13.19(7.23), 5.35(6.10), 4.35(2.76) for the UCTM group. NPRS (SD) at baseline, three-weeks and 15-weeks were 58.69 (19.46), 45.19 (23.43), 44.58 (24.08) for the control group; 64.08 (19.26), 42.19 (19.69), 34 (21.14) for the IST group; and 67.65 (20.65), 36.23 (20.10), 39.85 (25.44) for the UCTM group. Conclusions: Compared with no treatment, both forms of mobilization were associated with reduced disability at three weeks, and UCTM remained better than control at 15 weeks; there were no significant differences between the two mobilization groups. Trial registration: This study was registered in Clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02832232).

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