Posture, muscle endurance and ROM in individuals with and without neck pain

Factors such as postural changes, reduced neck muscle endurance and reduced range of motion (ROM) are common characteristics attributed to people with neck pain.

Objective:

(a) Identify differences in postural, muscular endurance and ROM characteristics between individuals with and without neck pain and (b) relate the presence and intensity of neck pain with the characteristics of static posture, muscular endurance and cervical ROM.

Method:

A cross-sectional study with 60 subjects equally divided into two groups with respect to the presence of neck pain carrying out the following evaluations: (1) static postural evaluation by digital photogrammetry; (2) the neck flexor endurance test; and (3) evaluation of cervical ROM using a fleximeter. The data were analyzed with independent t-tests, the Mann-Whitney U test, and the Spearman and Tau of Kendall correlation tests (α < 0.05).

Results:

There were no statistical differences between individuals with and without neck pain regarding the postural, muscle endurance and cervical ROM characteristics. No statistically significant correlations were found between pain and posture, muscle endurance and cervical ROM.

Conclusion:

Individuals with neck pain do not appear to present differences in their postural, neck flexor muscle endurance or cervical ROM characteristics when compared to individuals without neck pain, and neck pain appears to be unrelated to these variables.

Keywords:
Neck Pain; Health Evaluation; Posture; Physical Resistance; Range of Motion; Articular

Variables		With neck pain (n = 30)	Without neck pain (n = 30)
Gender
	Men (%)	40	36.7
	Women (%)	60	63.3
Age (years)		32.3±11.9	32.6±14.8
Body mass (kg)		69.6±15.2	71.6±11.9
Height (cm)		161.8±32.1	167.5±9.4

Variables			With neck pain (n = 30)	Without neck pain (n = 30)	Statistics (t; p; CI 95%)
Static posture	Head position (°)		51.9±4.9	53.2±4.5	t(58)=1.097; p=0.277; CI=−3.767 − 1.100
	Cervical lordosis (°)		44.9±13.4	47.7±12.9	t(58)=0.816; p=0.418; CI=−9.551 − 4.018
	Thoracic kyphosis (°)		37.9±8.0	39.3±11.6	t(58)=0.544; p=0.589; CI=−6.555 − 3.755
Muscle endurance	Endurance of neck flexors (% that manage to execute)		96.7	90	U=420.0; z=-1.026; p=0.612
ROM	Cervical flexion (°)		59.2±10.2	59.3±10.8	t(58)=0.037; p=0.971; CI=−5.528 - 5.328
	Cervical extension (°)		70.4±13.0	68.9±14.8	t(58)=-0.425; p=0.672; CI=−5.683 - 8.750
	Inclination (°)
		To the right	44.7±9.3	46.9±11.3	t(58)=0.846; p=0.401; CI=−7.632 − 3.100
		To the left	46.6±10.6	46.0±8.9	t(58)=-0.250; p=0.804; CI=−4.441 − 5.707
	Rotation (°)
		To the right	69.8±10.8	69.0±12.2	t(58)=−0.262; p=0.794; CI=−5.195 − 6.761
		To the left	72.2±10.0	70.7±8.8	t(58)=−0.616; p=0.540; CI=−3.370 − 6.370

Variables			Presence of neck pain (n = 30)	Intensity of neck pain (n = 30)
Static posture	Head position		r_s=−0.114, p=0.386	r_s=0.225, p=0.231
	Cervical lordosis		r_s=−0.092, p=0.487	r_s=0.027, p=0.889
	Thoracic kyphosis		r_s=−0.071, p=0.588	r_s=−0.202, p=0.285
Muscle endurance	Neck flexor endurance		τ=0.134, p=0.309	r_s=0.250, p=0.182
ROM	Neck flexion		r_s=0.005, p=0.971	r_s=0.045, p=0.814
	Neck extension		r_s=0.065, p=0.624	r_s=−0.011, p=0.954
	Inclination
		Right	r_s=−0.100, p=0.445	r_s=0.059, p=0.756
		Left	r_s=0.062, p=0.639	r_s=−0.156, p=0.410
	Rotation
		Right	r_s=0.058, p=0.660	r_s=−0.173, p=0.360
		Left	r_s=0.093, p=0.480	r_s=−0.053, p=0.781

Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná Rua Imaculada Conceição, 1155 - Prado-Velho -, Curitiba - PR - CEP 80215-901, Telefone: (41) 3271-1608 - Curitiba - PR - Brazil
E-mail: revista.fisioterapia@pucpr.br

Acompanhe os números deste periódico no seu leitor de RSS

[1] * BS, e-mail: mateus.aimi@gmail.com