RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FORWARD POSITION OF THE HEAD AND THICKNESS OF THE CERVICAL MUSCLES: CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Authors

  • V García-Molina Ejercicio libre de la Fisioterapia. Alcalá de Henares. España Author
  • D Pecos-Martín Departamento de Enfermería y Fisioterapia. Universidad de Alcalá. Alcalá de Henares. España Author
  • R Fernández-Matías Instituto de Investigación Fisioterapia y Dolor. Fundación General Universidad de Alcalá. Alcalá de Henares. España d Unidad de Investigación, Hospital Universitario Fundación Alcorcón. Alcorcón. España Author
  • S Fernández-Carnero Departamento de Enfermería y Fisioterapia. Universidad de Alcalá. Alcalá de Henares. España Author
  • A Lorenzo-Muñoz Centro Universitario San Isidoro. Universidad Pablo de Olavide. Sevilla, España Author
  • T Gallego-Izquierdo Departamento de Enfermería y Fisioterapia. Universidad de Alcalá. Alcalá de Henares. España Author

Keywords:

forward head posture, app, ultrasonography.

Abstract

Introduction: the forward head position is a postural misalignment that seems to explain changes at structural and anatomical level of the cervical region, by measuring key points such as the vertebra-cervical angle and the thickness of the anterior and posterior neck muscles. However, there is little evidence on the ability to detect these changes. Objectives: to measure and compare differences in thickness of the long neck (LC) and sternocleidomastoid (ECM) muscles in subjects with forward position of the head and subjects with correct alignment. Mate-rial and method: a descriptive and cross-sectional study with two groups of participants (n = 20) between 20 and 35 years old. Subjects were divided according to the presence or absence of the forward position of the head, ta-king as a reference the cranio-vertebral angle measured when standing using the Forward Head Posture (FHP)Neck Exercises Center application. Also, ultrasound measurements of the ECM and LC muscles, and of the pos-terior cervical musculature, were performed with a Logiq S7 Expert R3 ultrasound machine. Results: the groups did not show statistically significant differences in demographic variables, except in the cranio-vertebral angle (p < 0.001). Although there were changes in the values of the thickness of the left LC muscle (U = 49; p = 0.940) and cervical extensors on the right side (U = 36; p = 0.290), they were not statistically significant, indicating the absence of differences between the groups. Conclusion: the forward position of the head does not imply changes in the thick-ness of the superficial and deep cervical flexor and extensor muscles.

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Published

2020-06-30

How to Cite

García-Molina , V., Pecos-Martín , D., Fernández-Matías , R., Fernández-Carnero , S., Lorenzo-Muñoz , A., & Gallego-Izquierdo , T. (2020). RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FORWARD POSITION OF THE HEAD AND THICKNESS OF THE CERVICAL MUSCLES: CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY. Cuestiones De Fisioterapia, 49(3), 195-204. https://cuestionesdefisioterapia.es/index.php/cf/article/view/87