DefinePK

Abstract

Background: Chronic mechanical neck pain is a widespread musculoskeletal issue that often results in pain, reduced mobility, and functional limitations. It is commonly associated with poor posture and deficits in proprioception. Proprioceptive training aims to restore joint position sense and improve neuromuscular control. Tools like head-mounted lasers provide visual feedback to enhance training. Objective: To determine the effects of proprioceptive training of the cervical spine on pain, range of motion, joint position sense, and disability in chronic mechanical neck pain. Methodology: This randomized controlled trial was conducted on chronic mechanical neck pain subjects, both genders, with an age between 45 and 55 years, at Shahida Khaliq Health Centre, Islamabad. This trial is registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov NCT06034223 on September 11, 2023. A total of 36 participants were included in this study, and data were collected on a structured questionnaire. The patients were randomly assigned to either the treatment or control group, each with 18 individuals, using the lottery method. Both groups underwent conventional physical therapy treatment, with the treatment group receiving additional proprioceptive training using a head-mounted laser. The treatment protocol spanned four weeks, three days per week. Data collection involved a self-structured questionnaire encompassing range of motion, numeric pain rating scale, neck disability index and cervical joint position sense error. Cervical range of motion was evaluated using a bubble inclinometer. The Shapiro-Wilk test was applied to check the normality of the data. Paired sample T-test was applied for within-group comparison of variables, and an independent T-test for between-group comparison of variables. Results: The Mean age of the participants was 49.4±3.29, 07 (7.1%) of them were men, and 29 (92.9%) were women. The treatment group demonstrated significantly greater improvements (p<0.05) in cervical flexion, left and right lateral flexion range of motion, joint position error, pain intensity, and neck disability index. Conclusion: It is concluded that a four-week proprioceptive training intervention effectively enhances cervical flexion and lateral flexion range of motion on both sides, while concurrently reducing joint position error, pain intensity, and neck-related disability.