Higher variability in cervical force perception in people with neck pain

Area of Science:

• Neuromuscular control
• Proprioception
• Musculoskeletal rehabilitation

Background:

• Reduced cervical muscle force generation is observed in some individuals with neck pain.
• Previous research has not compared force perception accuracy between those with and without neck pain.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate and compare the accuracy of cervical muscle force perception in individuals with and without neck pain.
• To determine if neck pain affects the ability to accurately perceive and reproduce submaximal muscle forces.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional observational study involving 50 participants (25 with neck pain, 25 healthy controls).
• Participants performed isometric cervical muscle contractions at 10%, 25%, and 50% of their maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) without feedback.
• Measures included absolute error (AE), constant error (CE), and variable error (VE) to assess force reproduction accuracy.

Main Results:

• The neck pain group demonstrated significantly higher variable error (VE) across most measures, indicating greater inconsistency in force production.
• Differences in absolute error (AE) and constant error (CE) were observed at specific intensities, with the neck pain group showing higher AE at 10% MVC and lower CE in most measures.
• Higher mean VE in all directions and intensities suggests impaired force sense in the neck pain cohort.

Conclusions:

• Individuals with neck pain exhibit greater variability in force generation perception compared to healthy controls.
• This increased variability may indicate an impaired force sense, a component of proprioception, in the neck pain group.
• Impaired force sense could affect functional activities requiring precision and may necessitate specific rehabilitation strategies.