Neck Pain
Neck pain is one of the most common injuries in this day and age. In fact a 2004 study by Singapore General Hospital, found that 33% of Singaporeans actually suffered from neck pain at least once in their lives. In some cases it can even cause headaches and disturb your sleep, ultimately affecting your job, your relationships and your well being.
Studies show that women are more prone to getting neck pain (up to double the incidence rates compared to men). Some studies go further to suggest that psychosocial factors plays a bigger part in women when it comes to causing neck pain (i.e. stress affects women more in causing neck pain).
Lets start with the anatomy of the neck, also known as the CERVICAL SPINE. As you can see in this picture, there really is not a lot of room for error. Your neck is only about 10cm long, and within this parameter there are dozens of spinal nerves, 7 discs, 14 (facet) joints, and countless ligaments and muscles.
In VERY general terms, the discs absorb the shock and takes the weight of your head, whilst the facet joints at every level allow for movement.
The discs in your neck are relatively thin, and thus prone to injury. In this picture it shows several forms of disc problems (not a pretty picture!). Damaged discs not only cause pain, but they can press on the nerves in your neck sending pain into your shoulder and arms.
The facet joints which are located at every level of the spine (see RED arrows) also contribute to taking some of the weight, and they allow for movement to occur (think of 2 dinner plates rotating over each other). They too will go through a certain amount of wear and tear over the years, a condition known as SPONDYLOSIS, which is another way to describe neck osteoarthritis. As one passes 50 years old, neck pain and stiffness from Spondylosis is more likely to occur.
So what can we do about it? As shown before since there are so many complex structures crammed into such a small area, anything that will cause MORE compression or increase the pressure will worsen the problem. Hence the key word here is to decompress the neck. Take the pressure OFF the discs and facet joints. Physiotherapy can help of course. A common treatment for disc related pain is traction, which literally stretches the neck and takes the pressure OFF the discs.
As for the facet joints, some manual therapy techniques such as MOBILSATIONS can help loosen the facet joints, ?break? the stiffness, and promote better facet joint movement.
But at home and in the office you can help to decompress the neck too. A lot of people don?t realize the position of your head can either put MORE or LESS pressure on your discs and joints. And it?s this cumulated stress on your joints over many years that will do the damage. Your neck is designed to support the weight of your head, but it?s only ?strong? in one position.
Without changing the position of your head, draw an imaginary line from your earlobe vertically downwards. Now if your earlobes are in front of your shoulders (which should be in 90% of the people reading this), then your head is in a non-ideal PROTRACTED POSITION (position A). In this forward protracted position your head actually drops lower causing more compression. Imagine a bowling ball about to drop off the edge of a table, and that?s what happening to your head now.
As your head drops forward (and lower) it stresses the ligaments and your muscles must work harder as well. This explains why sometimes people get neck pain just by sitting down in a slouched position! What you ideally want is for your earlobes to line up nicely with your shoulders (see position B). You need to RETRACT your head backwards. As you do this, watch as your neck magically elongates (almost as if you are growing taller as can be seen this picture). Aim to get your earlobes in line with your shoulders. This position helps decompress your neck.
Now some of you will have difficulty getting your earlobes inline with your shoulders, and that?s simply due to structural changes and poor posture over the years. However with more practice and repetition, you can improve. This RETRACTION exercise also helps improve joint mobility and strengthens the muscles in your neck. So as much as possible during your daily life, try to maintain this posture. Start with holding this position for one minute, afew times per day. Incorporate it into your everyday life and make it a point to do it regularly (eg. waiting in the taxi stand, in the MRT, at the traffic lights?
To further help decompress your neck, some patients would use ?home-traction? devices like the ones shown here. They are cheap, comfortable and easy to use (available at www.1physiotherapy.com)
So before your NECK PAIN becomes a constant pain in the neck?. start your retraction exercises today! ..
