Clinical trial NCT06745960: Effect of Electrical Stimulation on Forward Head Posture
Official title: Effect of Electrical Stimulation on Painful Forward Head and Protracted Shoulder Posture in Adolescents
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Forward Head Posture
Rounded Shoulder Posture
Keywords: electrical stimulation
interferential current
adolescence
Lead sponsor: Cairo University
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2024-12-24
Enrollment: 40
Sex: FEMALE
Minimum age (years): 15
Maximum age (years): 18
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The study aims are:

1. To investigate the effect of electrical stimulation (interferential current) on forward head posture and protracted shoulder in adolescents.
2. To investigate the effect of electrical stimulation on cervical pain, cervical ROM, neck muscle strength, and quality of life in adolescents with forward head posture and protracted shoulder.

Detailed description: Forward head posture (FHP) is commonly defined as the protrusion of the head in the sagittal plane so that the head is placed anterior to the trunk. It can occur because of anterior translation of the head, and it is claimed to be associated with an increase in upper cervical extension, lower cervical flexion, or both.

Patients with FHP often experience neck pain and disability, it is associated with shortening of the upper trapezius, the posterior cervical extensor muscles, the sternocleidomastoid muscle, and levator scapulae muscle. Thus, FHP may contribute to neck and shoulder pain.

The prolonged uses of mobile phones and computers have led to a variety of musculoskeletal disorders, especially related to the neck as: Forward Head Posture (FHP), rounded shoulders (RS), upper cross syndrome, mechanical neck pain etc. FHP is one in which the upper cervical convexity is increased and the lower cervical convexity is decreased causing anterior weight bearing of the cervical spine. It is also known as Scholar's neck or Reading neck.

Electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) has been used as a complementary training method, applied either locally or to the whole body. It activates muscles artificially through various electrical current forms, which are delivered through electrodes on the target muscles.

Interferential current (IFC) is an established therapy which is used to treat pain and also effective for providing relaxation of muscles. The application of IFC at the medium frequency which suggests higher penetration of the electrical stimulation in the tissue by reducing tissue impedance

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Girls aged between (15-18) years old.
* Normal weight with BMI ranging from (16-25).
* Adolescents with mild and moderate forward head posture(FHP).
* Adolescents with mild and moderate neck pain.
* Adolescents with protracted shoulder.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Cervical disc.
* Previous Shoulder trauma within last 6months.
* Shoulder surgery.
* Cervical fracture.
* Congenital posture deformity.
* Inflammatory disease, spinal tumor, spinal compression, spinal cord infection.
* Taking any medication for pain

Primary outcomes:
measure: shoulder angle (SA)
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
measure: craniovertebral angle (CVA)
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
measure: head tilt angle (HTA)
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
measure: head position angle (HPA)
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Pain sensation
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
measure: cervical range of motion
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
measure: neck muscles strength
timeFrame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 8 weeks
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Dokki
country: Egypt
facility: Faculty of Physical Therapy
state: Giza
Study officials:
affiliation: Cairo University
name: asmaa O SAYED
role: STUDY_DIRECTOR
References:
citation: Elgendy MH, Ghaffar MAA, Sabbahi SAE, Abutaleb EES, Elsayed SEB. Efficacy of head postural correction program on craniovertebral angle, scapular position, and dominant hand grip strength in forward head posture subjects: A randomized controlled trial. Physiother Res Int. 2024 Jul;29(3):e2093. doi: 10.1002/pri.2093.
citation: Titcomb DA, Melton BF, Miyashita T, Bland HW. Evidence-Based Corrective Exercise Intervention for Forward Head Posture in Adolescents and Young Adults Without Musculoskeletal Pathology: A Critically Appraised Topic. J Sport Rehabil. 2022 Feb 16;31(5):640-644. doi: 10.1123/jsr.2021-0381. Print 2022 Jul 1.