Development of Standard Guidelines for Relaxation Exercises in Patients With Chronic Neck Pain and Determination of Their Effectiveness
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Exercise, Sham (No Treatment).
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Non Specific Chronic Neck Pain. Basic parameters: 22 years — 65 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Turkey (Türkiye)
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Overview
The goal of this observational study is to determine whether relaxation exercises performed before cranio-cervical flexion can reduce superficial neck muscle activation (specifically sternocleidomastoid and upper trapezius) in individuals with neck pain. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Does performing relaxation exercises prior to cranio-cervical flexion reduce sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle activation? * Does it reduce upper trapezius muscle activation during the standing? Researchers will compare the group performing relaxation exercises before cranio-cervical flexion to the group performing only cranio-cervical flexion to see if there is a measurable difference in superficial neck muscle activation. Participants will: * Perform cranio-cervical flexion exercises. * Perform relaxation exercises prior to the cranio-cervical flexion (intervention group only). * Undergo surface EMG measurements to assess muscle activity.
Interventions
- Other Exercise
Average of 10 minutes relaxation exercises guided with a standard audio record based on reciprocal and autogenic muscle inhibition, proprioceptive training and postural training. - Other Sham (No Treatment)
This group take no treatment between actual before and after measurements.
Primary outcome measures
- Numerical Pain Rating Scale [Time frame: At enrollment (pre-intervention) and immediately after the relaxation exercise intervention or sham intervention (Day 1)]
- Turkish Version of Core Outcome Measure Index for Neck Pain [Time frame: At enrollment (pre-intervention)]
- EMG Activation Level of Sternocleidomastoid Muscle During Craniocervical Flexion Maneuver [Time frame: At enrollment (pre-intervention) and immediately after the relaxation exercise intervention (Day 1)]
- EMG Activation Level of Upper Trapezius Muscle During Standing Still [Time frame: At enrollment (pre-intervention) and immediately after the relaxation exercise intervention (Day 1)]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Knowledge of Turkish
- Chronic (at least three months) neck pain
- Neck pain level of 4 or higher on a numerical pain scale
Exclusion criteria
- Neck pain caused by a tumor, trauma, or rheumatic disease
- History of surgery involving the head, neck, shoulder, or thoracic region
- Root compression
- Regular use of painkillers due to another illness
- Another illness severe enough to interfere with work
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Model
- Parallel assignment
- Masking
- Double blind
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
Study locations
Turkey (Türkiye) · 1 center
- Faculty of Health Sciences — Balıkesir
Publications
- Rota E, Evangelista A, Ceccarelli M, Ferrero L, Milani C, Ugolini A, Mongini F. Efficacy of a workplace relaxation exercise program on muscle tenderness in a working community with headache and neck pain: a longitudinal, controlled study. Eur J Phys Rehabil Med. 2016 Aug;52(4):457-65. Epub 2016 Jan 8. PMID 26745361
- Lee BK, Seo DK. The Importance of Optimal Gaze Direction on Deep Neck Flexor Activation in Chronic Neck Pain. Healthcare (Basel). 2020 Nov 1;8(4):449. doi: 10.3390/healthcare8040449. PMID 33139645
- Kazeminasab S, Nejadghaderi SA, Amiri P, Pourfathi H, Araj-Khodaei M, Sullman MJM, Kolahi AA, Safiri S. Neck pain: global epidemiology, trends and risk factors. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2022 Jan 3;23(1):26. doi: 10.1186/s12891-021-04957-4. PMID 34980079
- Jull GA, Falla D, Vicenzino B, Hodges PW. The effect of therapeutic exercise on activation of the deep cervical flexor muscles in people with chronic neck pain. Man Ther. 2009 Dec;14(6):696-701. doi: 10.1016/j.math.2009.05.004. Epub 2009 Jul 25. PMID 19632880
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07048093 · G.O. 2024/153