Background & Aims

Background: Nonspecific neck pain is one of the most common causes of neck disorder, which leads to increased postural sway with cervical proprioceptive deficit.
Purpose: This study aimed to determine the effect of cervical mobilization on static/dynamic balance and cervical proprioception in patients with nonspecific neck pain (NSNP), which may lead to a lack of postural control and joint position sense.

Methods

Study Design: A two-armed, double-blind, parallel-group, randomized clinical trial with a 3-week treatment protocol was carried out for the study.
Methods: Sixty-six patients were randomly allocated into two groups. Both groups received conventional physiotherapy (hot pack-TENS); however, the mobilization group received mobilization and the placebo-control group received placebo mobilization twice a week for 3 weeks. Static/dynamic balance, joint position sense, mobility and pain were evaluated with Kinesthetic Skill Training System 3000 device, joint position error test, CROM (Cervical Range-of-Motion Instrument), and Visual Analogue Scale, respectively.

Results

Results: Following treatment, there were significant improvements in both dynamic balance (p<0.001) and proprioception in the direction of left rotation in the mobilization group (p=0.003), and these changes were more than those in placebo-controls statistically (p<0.001/p=0.003). Although there was a significant decrease in the deficits of static balance (p=0.044) and proprioception in the direction of right rotation (p=0.011) after mobilization, these changes were not more than those in pacebo-controls (p=0.192/p=0.154).

Conclusions

Cervical mobilization had a significant effect on dynamic balance, a limited effect on the sense of cervical proprioception and no effect on static balance in patients with NSNP. This study contributes valuable insights into the therapeutic potential of cervical mobilization for addressing postural control and joint position sense in individuals with NSNP. Future research may delve into refining treatment protocols or exploring additional outcome measures to further enhance our understanding of the nuanced effects of cervical mobilization on different aspects of neck pain and associated impairments.

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Presenting Author

Nagihan Acet

Poster Authors

Nagihan Acet

Assist. Prof.

At?l?m University

Lead Author

Nagihan Acet

Atilim University

Lead Author

NEV?N ATALAY GÜZEL

PROFESOR

Gazi University, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation

Lead Author

ZAFER GÜNEND?

Gazi University, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Lead Author

Topics

  • Specific Pain Conditions/Pain in Specific Populations: Neck Pain