Ghamkhar Leila, Kahlaee Amir Hossein
From the Department of Physical Therapy, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017 Dec;96(12):874-880. doi: 10.1097/PHM.0000000000000778.
This study compared the relationship between some clinical factors and the size of neck flexors in participants with or without chronic neck pain.
In this case-control study, the correlation between flexor endurance capacity as well as thickness, cross-section area, and shape ratio of longus colli/capitis and sternocleidomastoid muscles were examined in 30 patients with chronic neck pain and 30 asymptomatic participants.
The patients showed lower flexor endurance (P = 0.02), smaller thickness (P = 0.03), and cross-section area (P < 0.01) of longus colli as compared with controls. Longus capitis and sternocleidomastoid size were not different between the two groups. The flexor endurance showed a negative correlation with longus colli shape ratio (r = -0.38, P = 0.03) and a positive correlation with longus capitis cross-section area (r = 0.38, P = 0.03) in the patients with chronic neck pain. In the control group, flexor endurance was negatively correlated with longus colli shape ratio (r = -0.45, P = 0.01) but positively correlated with longus capitis thickness (r = 0.45, P = 0.01) and cross-section area (r = 0.38, P = 0.03). Neck disability and pain intensity indices were not significantly correlated with either flexor muscles endurance or size.
The ultrasonographic measures of the deep neck flexor muscles and the flexor endurance test, being associated with each other, could successfully differentiate patients with chronic neck pain from asymptomatic participants. However, the endurance test scores were not correlated with self-reported disability or pain intensity indices.
本研究比较了有或无慢性颈部疼痛的参与者中一些临床因素与颈部屈肌大小之间的关系。
在这项病例对照研究中，对30例慢性颈部疼痛患者和30例无症状参与者的屈肌耐力以及颈长肌/头长肌和胸锁乳突肌的厚度、横截面积和形状比之间的相关性进行了检查。
与对照组相比，患者的颈长肌屈肌耐力较低（P = 0.02）、厚度较小（P = 0.03）和横截面积较小（P < 0.01）。两组之间头长肌和胸锁乳突肌的大小没有差异。在慢性颈部疼痛患者中，屈肌耐力与颈长肌形状比呈负相关（r = -0.38，P = 0.03），与头长肌横截面积呈正相关（r = 0.38，P = 0.03）。在对照组中，屈肌耐力与颈长肌形状比呈负相关（r = -0.45，P = 0.01），但与头长肌厚度呈正相关（r = 0.45，P = 0.01）和横截面积呈正相关（r = 0.38，P = 0.03）。颈部功能障碍和疼痛强度指数与屈肌耐力或大小均无显著相关性。
颈部深层屈肌的超声测量和屈肌耐力测试相互关联，能够成功区分慢性颈部疼痛患者和无症状参与者。然而，耐力测试分数与自我报告的功能障碍或疼痛强度指数无关。
