Motor_Control_Neck_SSED

A Motor Control Intervention of Patients With Forward Head Posture and Persistent Neck Pain - A Single System Experimental Design With 12 Month Follow-up

Neck pain is a common problem in the western world. There is a group of people suffering from neck pain with a reduced ability to maintain an upright posture showing a forward head position and an altered muscle function. The aim of the study was to evaluate a motor control intervention for patients with persistent neck pain and a forward head posture. This pilot study used a Single System Experimental Design (SSED) with an A-B-A-design and multiple baselines. The tailored motor control intervention addressed the faulty postural alignment and the deep muscles of the cervical spine.

The tailored motor control intervention used for motor learning-procedure described by Fitts and Posner, further developed and adapted to rehabilitation of the spine by O´Sullivan. The stages involved in the process was the Cognitive stage, Associative stage and the Autonomous stage

The craniovertebral (CV) -angle was used to estimate the cervical curvature and head posture in relation to the thorax being measured with the Head Posture Spinal Curvature Instrument

The Cranio-Cervical Flexion Test (C-CFT) was used to assess the tonic holding abilities of the deep cervical muscles by using a Pressure biofeedback unit.

The Neck Disability Index (NDI) is a self-reported questionnaire with 10 categories where each question estimates the current status, from no disability (0) to full disability within that category used to assess disability.

The pain intensity was evaluated using the 100 mm Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) with the anchors "no pain" and "worst pain imaginable" that assessed the average pain intensity in the neck over the last seven days.

The category Relation to Body Center (items Postural activity, Deviation in standing, Stability in stance and In sitting) and Relation to Ground (items Contact surface, Load, Stance on one leg) from the Body Awareness Scale (BAS) was used to measure the theoretical plumb line perpendicular to the body´s center to estimate the ability to maintain a neutral posture.

Inclusion Criteria: 20 - 50 years of age with pain originating from the neck for at least three months. A visual forward head posture. Less than105 points on the Örebro musculoskeletal pain screening questionnaire Exclusion Criteria: neurological dysfunction. former cervical surgery or compression fracture of the spine no mental retardation no physiotherapy treatment during the last 6 months.