The relationship between cervical spine range of motion and postural sway in mechanical neck pain: A cross-sectional study

Background: Impairments in postural sway have been identified in people with mechanical neck pain. The influence of cervical spine range of motion (ROM) on postural sway is unclear in mechanical neck pain (MNP). Objective: This study investigated the relationship between cervical spine range of motion (ROM) and postural sway in MNP. Methods: The cervical ROM was measured using the Cervical Range of Motion (CROM) device. Standing postural sway characterised by mean centre of pressure (COP) measurements in the anterior posterior (AP) and medio-lateral direction with eyes closed and feet together condition was recorded on a posturography platform. Pearson product moment correlation coefficient was used to identify the relationship between cervical ROM and postural sway. Results: Seventy-two MNP individuals (Mean age: 29.9 +/- 11.7) of either sex (Male: Female = 23 : 49) were recruited. Overall, no statistically significant correlations were identified between cervical spine ROM in sagittal and frontal plane and postural sway (r values ranging from 0.00 to -0.38; p-values > 0.05). However, a weak negative correlation was present between the cervical rotation and AP (r-value = -0.23; p-value = 0.04) and mediolateral (r-value = -0.38; p-value = 0.01) COP excursion. Conclusion: The cervical spine ROM was found to have a weak relationship with postural sway in individuals with MNP. This suggests the investigation of other mechanisms especially muscle tension which might be responsible for altered postural sway in MNP.