Analysis of posture and balance impairments in individuals with chronic nonspecific neck pain—An observational study

Abstract

Abstract Background Neck pain is one of the most burdensome chronic musculoskeletal problems globally. Impaired proprioception is associated with chronic nonspecific neck pain as the structures of the cervical spine are crucial for proprioception and balance. There is a paucity of literature examining objective measures of balance and postural sway in patients with nonspecific neck pain. Methods This study was observational consisting 126 individuals (63 cases and 63 controls) who were recruited using convenience sampling. The demographics of the samples were collected and the postural and balance impairment was assessed using Biodex Balance SD. Mean, Median, and SD were obtained and the inferential analysis was done using the Whitney U Test and the level of significance was accepted at p < 0.05. Results The subjects with neck pain showed had a lower static stability index, static sway index, static stability index—forward backward and static sway index lateral scores than the normal counterparts. There are significant differences in the overall static stability index (p < 0.001). There was a significant difference in static sway index (p = 0.003) and static stability index lateral (p = 0.004). There was no significant difference for static sway index forward and backward (p = 0.550) and lateral sway index (p = 0.711). Conclusion Subjects with neck pain had a lower static stability index, static sway index, static stability index—forward backward, and static sway index lateral scores than the normal counterparts and there was a significant difference between the static sway and static stability index in forward and backward directions as well as in lateral direction. These findings may help to assess the specific balance parameters and address the underlying causes of balance issues in patients with neck pain and also provide a comprehensive care to the patients. Clinical Trial Registration The trial was registered with CTRI India with registration number: CTRI/2022/07/044222.

Keywords

• balance
• chronic pain
• neck pain
• posture
• stability index
• sway index