Neck pain is a common musculoskeletal problem, worldwide. Just like low back pain, neck pain is episodic in nature. Individuals with neck pain that lack an identifiable structural cause for their symptoms are usually classified as having mechanical neck pain. Direct structural cause of mechanical neck pain is rarely identifiable. Although the cause of neck pain may be associated with degenerative processes or pathology identified during diagnostic imaging, the tissue that is causing a patient’s neck pain is most often unknown.
Causes of Neck Pain
Poor Posture/Muscle Imbalance
The most common abnormal posture seen in the region of the neck is the forward head posture. There is shortening(tightness) of the postural muscles like the upper trapezius, levator scapulae, and pectoral muscles and weakness in deep neck flexors, rhomboids, and serratus anterior. This leads to restricted neck mobility. Such kind of muscle imbalance and abnormal posture is found in the population who work on laptops/computers for long hours. This creates stress and pain in the cervical region. Poor posture is considered the greatest cause of mechanical neck pain when there is no trauma or major injury.
Alteration in Thoracic Alignment
The cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine are interrelated biomechanically. There has to be proper motion occurring at the thoracic spine into full ROM at the cervical spine. The thoracic spine acts as the supporting base for the cervical spine and it has an influence on cervical joint movement via the cervicothoracic junction. Because of the close kinetic link, any mechanical dysfunction at the thoracic spine will create an associated effect on the cervical spine.
Cervical Radiculopathy (Nerve Irritation)
Cervical radiculopathy is a disease process marked by nerve compression from disc material or arthritic bone spurs. This impingement typically produces neck and radiating arm pain or numbness, sensory deficits, or motor dysfunction in the neck and upper extremities.
Cervical radiculopathy occurs with pathologies that cause symptoms on the nerve roots. Those can be compression, irritation, traction, and a lesion on the nerve root caused by either a disc, foraminal narrowing, or degenerative arthritis.
Osteoarthritis and Stenosis
Osteoarthritis of the cervical spine may be defined as a degenerative disorder of C1-C7, complicated by inflammatory reactions. It is a very complex disease with multiple causes and can be debilitating.
Spinal stenosis may occur as a result of spondylosis (degenerative changes in the cervical spine) but can also be the result of traumatic (fractures and instability) and inflammatory conditions or caused by herniated discs or tumours.
Management of Neck Pain
At All Out Physiotherapy we are experts in managing neck pain we use the All Out Method to help firstly diagnose the problem that your having. We then test the muscles around the neck to see the cause of the neck pain which led to the pain in the first place and then by knowing the why behind the pain we can then reduce the pain and prevent reoccurrence of your neck pain.
We get as much information as possible around your neck pain and see where the pain is, how it is affecting you rule out any serious problems that could occur with your neck. By listening to what is happening we are able to see where to start the assessment to figure out where the root cause of your pain is.
There are several things we can do to help your pain. We can use acupuncture, massage and manual therapy in combination with our customised and personalised exercise programs in order to fix your pain.
If your suffering from neck pain then do not hesitate to book in using the link below
