Evaluating Differences Between Participants With Various Forward Head Posture With and Without Postural Neck Pain Using Craniovertebral Angle and Forward Shoulder Angle

The purpose of this study was to investigate differences between individuals with various forward head posture (FHP) severities with and without postural neck pain using craniovertebral angle and forward shoulder angle.

Ninety participants age 20 to 50 years were categorized into the following 4 groups based on observational method and presence or absence of postural neck pain: (1) slight FHP group without pain, (2) slight FHP group with pain, (3) moderate-to-severe FHP group without pain, and (4) moderate-to-severe FHP group with pain. A digital imaging technique was used to measure the craniovertebral angle and forward shoulder angle in a standing position.

A 1-way analysis of variance test showed a significant difference for craniovertebral angle in the 4 groups (F = 22.04, P < .001). Tukey's test showed the difference in this variable was significant between slight FHP groups (with or without pain) and moderate-to-severe FHP groups (with or without pain) (P < .001). Although overall F indicated a significant difference (F = 4.11, P < .009) of the forward shoulder angle in 4 groups, Tukey's test revealed this was only significantly different in 2 groups: slight FHP with pain and moderate-to-severe FHP with pain (P = .005).

The craniovertebral angle in the 2 groups of moderate-to-severe FHP was significantly smaller than that in the 2 groups of slight FHP. However, the forward shoulder angle in the group of moderate-to-severe FHP with pain was only significantly smaller than that in slight FHP with pain. The results showed that including pain as a factor of categorization did not lead to a significant difference between various groups regarding craniovertebral angle and forward shoulder angle.