Title |
Self-administered physical exercise training as treatment of neck and shoulder pain among military helicopter pilots and crew: a randomized controlled trial
|
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Published in |
BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, April 2017
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DOI | 10.1186/s12891-017-1507-3 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Mike Murray, Britt Lange, Bo Riebeling Nørnberg, Karen Søgaard, Gisela Sjøgaard |
Abstract |
Neck pain is frequent among military helicopter pilots and crew-members, and pain may influence individual health and work performance. The aim of this study was to examine if an exercise intervention could reduce neck pain among helicopter pilots and crew-members. Thirty-one pilots and thirty-eight crew-members were randomized to either an exercise-training-group (n = 35) or a reference-group (n = 34). The exercise-training-group received 20-weeks of specific neck/shoulder training. The reference-group received no training. Intensity of neck pain previous 3-months (scale 0-10). additional neck/shoulder pain intensity variables and pressure-pain-threshold in the trapezius muscle (TRA) and upper-neck-extensor muscles (UNE). Regular training adherence was defined as ≥1 training session a week. Statistical analyses performed were intention-to-treat and per-protocol. Students t-test was performed (p < 0.05). Intensity of neck pain previous 3-months at baseline was: 2.2 ± 1.8 and previous 7-days: 1.0 ± 1.5, and pressure-pain-threshold in TRA and UNE (right/left) was in kPa: 424 ± 187 / 434 ± 188 and 345 ± 157 / 371 ± 170 in the exercise-training-group, and 416 ± 177 / 405 ± 163 and 334 ± 147 / 335 ± 163 in the reference-group, with no differences between groups. Intention-to-treat-analysis revealed no significant between-group-differences in neck pain intensity and pressure-pain-threshold. Between-group-differences, including participants who trained regularly (n = 10) were also non-significant. Within-group-changes were significant among participants with regular training adherence in the exercise-training-group regarding intensity of neck pain previous 3-months (from 2.2 ± 0.6 to 1.3 ± 1.3, p = 0.019). Likewise, within the whole exercise-training-group, neck pain previous 7-days decreased (from 1.0 ± 1.4 to 0.6 ± 1.1, p = 0.024). Additional within-group-changes regarding pressure-pain-threshold in kPa were for the reference-group a reduction in TRA and UNE (right/left) to: 342 ± 143 / 332 ± 154 and 295 ± 116 / 292 ± 121 implying increased pain sensitivity, while for the exercise-training-group only a reduction in left TRA was seen: 311 ± 113. The exercise intervention did not reduce neck pain among helicopter pilots and crew-members as no significant between-group-differences were found. However, some trends were demonstrated as some neck pain intensity and sensitivity improved more within the exercise-training-group but not within the reference-group. The lack of effect may be due to low adherence since only ~ 1/3 of subjects in the exercise-training-group engaged in regular training which may be due to the self-administration of the training. Ethical committee of Southern Denmark (S-20120121) 29 August, 2012. Clinical Trail Registration ( NCT01926262 ) 16 August, 2013. |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 199 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Bachelor | 31 | 16% |
Student > Master | 29 | 15% |
Researcher | 14 | 7% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 13 | 7% |
Unspecified | 9 | 5% |
Other | 29 | 15% |
Unknown | 74 | 37% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Nursing and Health Professions | 45 | 23% |
Medicine and Dentistry | 22 | 11% |
Sports and Recreations | 14 | 7% |
Unspecified | 9 | 5% |
Social Sciences | 6 | 3% |
Other | 24 | 12% |
Unknown | 79 | 40% |