A single session of visual feedback improves range of motion in patients with chronic idiopathic neck pain: A randomized and controlled study.

Abstract

Chronic pain is associated with cortical reorganization, and interventions targeting cortical remapping, such as visual feedback of the painful body segment, seem promising. The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate the impact of visual feedback of the neck, using mirrors on pain intensity. Secondary aims were to evaluate the impact of visual feedback on neck range of motion and unadjusted cognitive processes. Pain intensity, range of motion, fear of movement, catastrophizing and anxiety were assessed before and after 10 repetitions of each of the neck movements, with (experimental group; n=21) and without (control group; n=21) visual feedback of the neck. A significant increase in the range of motion of all neck movements (p<0.05) was found in the experimental group when compared with the control group. Increases in range of motion varied between 2.5° and 3.4°. No significant effects were found for the remaining variables (p>0.05). The study findings suggest that performing a series of 10 active movements of the neck while observing the reflection of the neck in a mirror might help to improve neck range of motion. Furthermore, our results support further studies investigating the effect of longer interventions using visual feedback of the neck, either alone or combined with other interventions.