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NCT Number: NCT03136250

Effects of Autogenic and Reciprocal Inhibition, Muscle Energy Techniques in the Management of Mechanical Neck Pain

Neck pain is among the most common musculoskeletal disorders worldwide and is an important public health issue in terms of personal wellbeing. Prevalence of neck pain show excessive variations, with a point prevalence varying between 6% and 22%, and one year prevalence ranging between 1.5-75%. Neck pain like all other mechanical disorders leads to pain, disability and decreased range of motion (ROM). Stretching is a very common exercise performed by sportsmen, elderly, in physical therapy and rehabilitation patients, thus practiced in all sorts of fitness programs. The major types of stretching included in the literature are static, dynamic and pre-contraction stretching; of which static stretching is the conventional type of stretching. The different types of pre-contraction stretching include Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) stretching, Post Isometric Relaxation (PIR), Post Facilitation stretch (PFS) and Active Isolated Stretch (AIS). Pre-contraction stretching is also considered a part of Muscle Energy Technique (MET). Recently MET and pre-contraction stretching have been shown to have significant superiority over conventional stretching in management of mechanical neck pain, but the evidence is currently lacking regarding which of the two pre-contraction stretching protocols, namely autogenic and reciprocal inhibition is more effective than the other. A RCT will be conducted in order to find and compare the effectiveness of conventional stretching and pre-contraction stretching (autogenic inhibition and reciprocal inhibition). One Control group (conventional group) and two Experimental groups (Experimental Group A - Autogenic Inhibition & Experimental Group B - Reciprocal Inhibition) will be formed. The participants will be recruited in the study if they meet the inclusion criteria using consecutive sampling from Fauji Foundation Hospital and randomized into the three respective groups. All the groups will receive the gold standard treatment for chronic neck pain including mobilization and modalities. In addition to the gold standard treatment the participants will receive specific stretching protocol based on their interventional group

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Key information

Conditions

Neck Pain Neurologic Manifestations Pain Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Signs and Symptoms

Age range

18 year–70 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Foundation University Institute of Rehabilitation Sciences

Islamabad, Pakistan

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Age 18 to 70 years;
  • Neck pain on NPRS 4 to 8 (moderate cases);
  • Subacute or chronic cases (4 to 12 weeks).
  • Decreased or painful Cervical range of motion (CROM)

Exclusion criteria

  • Signs of serious pathology (e.g., malignancy, inflammatory disorder, infection);
  • History of cervical spine surgery in previous 12 months;
  • History of trauma or fractures in cervical spine;
  • Signs of cervical radiculopathy or myelopathy; and
  • Vascular syndromes such as VBI

Treatment and study plan

Group A (Control Group - Static Stretching + Standard Treatment)

Other

o Conventional Gold Standard treatment (Manual Therapy + Modalities) Conventional Static Stretching 15-30 seconds hold 3-5 repetitions (Page P, 2012) for Ant/Middle/Posterior Scaleni, Sternocleidomastoid, Levator Scapulae and Upper Trapezius Muscles.

Group B (Autogenic Inhibition - PIR + Standard treatment)

Other

o Conventional Gold Standard treatment (Manual Therapy + Modalities) Post Isometric Relaxation MET (3-5 reps) for Ant/Middle/Posterior Scaleni, Sternocleidomastoid, Levator Scapulae and Upper Trapezius Muscles. (Chaitow L, 2006)

Group C (Reciprocal Inhibition - RI + Standard treatment)

Other

o Conventional Gold Standard treatment (Manual Therapy + Modalities) Reciprocal Inhibition MET (3-5 reps) for Ant/Middle/Posterior Scaleni, Sternocleidomastoid,Levator Scapulae and Upper Trapezius Muscles (Chaitow L, 2006)

Primary outcomes

  1. Pain (Numeric Pain Rating Scale) - Change is being assessed

    Time frame: Pre-treatment (First day before treatment), Immediate Follow Up (After 1st treatment session) & Follow Up (After 5 days of Treatment)

    To measure the pre and post patient's perception of pain

  2. Cervical Range of Motion (CROM) - Change is being assessed

    Time frame: Pre-treatment (First day before treatment), Immediate Follow Up (After 1st treatment session) & Follow Up (After 5 days of Treatment)

    To measure patient's improvement in cervical range of motion

  3. Neck Disability Index (NDI) - Change is being assessed

    Time frame: Pre-treatment (First day before treatment), Immediate Follow Up (After 1st treatment session) & Follow Up (After 5 days of Treatment)

    to measure patient's pre and post functional disability

  4. Cervical Isometric Muscle Strength (Modified Sphygmomanometer dynamometry) - Change is being assessed

    Time frame: Pre-treatment (First day before treatment), Immediate Follow Up (After 1st treatment session) & Follow Up (After 5 days of Treatment)

    To measure patient's improvement in Isometric Muscle Strength

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Foundation University Islamabad

Other

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2017
Primary completion
2017
Study completion
2017
First posted
May 2, 2017
Registry last updated
Feb 8, 2018

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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