Effects of Cervical Spine Manipulation in Patients With Mechanical Neck Pain

Mechanical neck pain is known as one of the most common disorders in musculoskeletal system. In elderly population, prevalence of neck pain ranges up to 38% while point prevalence and lifetime prevalence ranges from 6% to 22% and 14.2% to 71% respectively . Neck pain is defined by the international association for the study of pain as: "Pain perceived as arising from anywhere within the region bounded superiorly by superior nuchal line, inferior by transverse line through the tip of first thoracic spinous process, and laterally by sagittal plane tangential to the lateral border of neck" . There are variable causes of neck pain like trauma, infections, inflammatory conditions, musculoskeletal conditions, rheumatic diseases, and congenital diseases . There are varying degrees of disability and activity limitation caused by neck pain, like work productivity reduction and decrease quality of life . People who have a sedentary lifestyle, poor occupational postures, students with poor posture, people involved in occupation like computer programming, clerical job workers and desk job works are more likely to suffer from mechanical neck pain . Most common cause of mechanical neck pain is muscle tightness, Upper trapezius and levator scapulae are the most involved muscles

Inclusion Criteria:Patients with non-radiating neck pain of moderate intensity scoring 4-8 on the numeric pain rating scale (NPRS)Have a Neck Disability Index (NDI) score of 20% or greater (10 points or greater on a 0-to-50 scale)Patients who have cervical joint position error greater than 7.1 cm or 4.5 degreesExclusion Criteria:Patients with a positive history of trauma, fracture or surgery of the cervical spine .anatomical cervical spine abnormalitypresented with any neurological signshistory of benign paroxysmal positional vertigoNeck pain with radiation to the arm and upper extremity .Diagnosed cases of torticollis, and scoliosisHistory of osteoporosis, Any cardiac disorderhad participated in a neck exercise program in the past 6 months .