Affiliations: [a] Department of Physical Therapy for Neurological Disorders, Kasr Al-Ainy Educational Hospital, Cairo, Egypt | [b] Department of Physical Therapy for Neurology, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt | [c] Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt | [d] Department of Biomechanics, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt | [e] Department for Woman and Child Health, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Beni-Suef University, Beni Suef, Egypt
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Amina Awad, Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, 7 Ahmed El-Zayat Street, Giza 12613, Egypt. E-mail: amina_awad@cu.edu.eg.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Chronic mechanical cervical pain (CMCP) is a common disabling problem worldwide, interfering with upper extremities function. However studying the impact of CMCP on shoulder proprioception is still lacking. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the impact of CMCP on shoulder proprioception in young adults compared with normal control (NC) individuals. METHODS: A comparative study was conducted between two groups; 40 patients with CMCP (mean age 32.28 ± 6.586) and 40 age and sex matched NC (mean age 33.43 ± 9.021). The Biodex isokinetic dynamometer was used to assess shoulder active sense of position at 30∘ external and internal rotations. The absolute angular error was calculated for the dominant and non-dominant shoulders. RESULTS: The absolute angular error was significantly increased only in the CMCP at both rotation angles for both shoulders, showing a remarkable increase on the dominant shoulder and in the external rotation range compared with NC. CONCLUSIONS: CMCP can significantly impair shoulder proprioception, particularly on the dominant side and in external rotation range. This could emphasize the careful examination of shoulder proprioception for the early detection of shoulders at risk, to eliminate the possibility of shoulder instability and/or injury in young adults with CMCP.
