The Wearable Postural Feedback Devices Combined With Exercise in Office Workers With Chronic Neck Pain

NCT ID: NCT06455774

Last Updated: 2025-06-17

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: ENROLLING_BY_INVITATION
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 58 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2024-11-01
• Study Completion Date: 2025-12-30

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to investigate the effects of wearable postural feedback devices added to exercise approach on neck pain and proprioception in office workers with nonspecific chronic neck pain.

H0: The effects of wearable postural feedback devices added to exercise and exercise approach on neck pain and proprioception are similar in office workers with nonspecific chronic neck pain.

H1: The effects of wearable postural feedback devices added to exercise and exercise approach on neck pain and proprioception are different in office workers with nonspecific chronic neck pain.

58 office workers aged 25-55 years with nonspecific chronic neck pain will be included and divided into 2 groups, physiotherapy programs will be applied for 8 weeks, 3 days a week. All participants will be trained on office ergonomics and proper sitting posture at the beginning of the study. Group 1: Exercise and Postural feedback, Group 2: Exercise. Sociodemographic information will be questioned, pain, neck proprioception, craniovertebral angle, neck muscle strength, endurance and range of motion will be assessed. Neck disability index, physical activity level, stress perception level, fatigue level, work performance and patient satisfaction will also be evaluated at baseline and 8 weeks.

Detailed Description

Treatment of work-related musculoskeletal disorders can be challenging due to multiple underlying risk factors like physical workload, poor posture, altered sensorimotor control, biopsychosocial conditions. When the information provided by the individual's own sensory system is insufficient, the use of extrinsic feedback has been proposed as an option to reduce sensorimotor discomfort and thus improve movement control. Due to the progress in miniaturization technology of the microelectromechanical system, postural feedback devices have been developed.

Recent studies have used different feedback methods to improve posture. Studies have compared the effectiveness of different types of feedback, active exercise and passive therapy. However, there is a need for studies examining the effects of adding postural feedback to different intervention strategies in the office environment.

Small, lightweight and easy to wear feedback devices can be expected to provide positive effects on neck pain and proprioception in addition to classical exercises by providing real-time feedback to the user during daily activities.

Conditions

Neck Pain

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: SINGLE

Study Groups

Group1- Exercise and Wearable Postural Feedback Devices Group

Participants will wear the postural feedback device for 8 weeks, 3 days a week during their desk work (6-8 hours) and will be included in an exercise program including 30 minutes of stretching and strengthening exercises for the cervical region. Exercises will be performed 3 days a week for 30 minutes and will be supervised by a physiotherapist one day a week.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Wearable Postural Feedback Device

Intervention Type: DEVICE

The postural feedback wearable device we will use in the study is programmed to vibrate when hunched postures are detected (based on changes in the curvature and curvature of the spine), alerting users to changes in their body position.

Exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

Trapezius, Sternocleidomastoid (SCM), Scalene, pectoral muscles will be targeted for stretching exercises and deep neck flexors, Trapezius, Levator Scapula, Rhomboids will be targeted for strengthening exercises. The intensity of the exercises will be increased according to the weeks. Stretching exercises will be performed as a single set at the pain limit, maintaining the position of the muscle groups in the longest tolerable position for 30 seconds. In strengthening exercises, participants will hold the position for 5-10 seconds at the end of the movement. Moderate resistance elastic bands and free weights will be used for resistance exercises. In the following weeks, progression will be made in all exercises according to the patient's condition.

Group2- Exercise Group

Participants will receive an exercise program consisting of stretching and strengthening exercises for the cervical region. Exercises will be performed 3 days a week for 30 minutes and will be supervised by a physiotherapist one day a week. Patients will be followed up with an exercise diary.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Exercise

Intervention Type: OTHER

Trapezius, Sternocleidomastoid (SCM), Scalene, pectoral muscles will be targeted for stretching exercises and deep neck flexors, Trapezius, Levator Scapula, Rhomboids will be targeted for strengthening exercises. The intensity of the exercises will be increased according to the weeks. Stretching exercises will be performed as a single set at the pain limit, maintaining the position of the muscle groups in the longest tolerable position for 30 seconds. In strengthening exercises, participants will hold the position for 5-10 seconds at the end of the movement. Moderate resistance elastic bands and free weights will be used for resistance exercises. In the following weeks, progression will be made in all exercises according to the patient's condition.

Interventions

Wearable Postural Feedback Device

The postural feedback wearable device we will use in the study is programmed to vibrate when hunched postures are detected (based on changes in the curvature and curvature of the spine), alerting users to changes in their body position.

Intervention Type: DEVICE

Exercise

Trapezius, Sternocleidomastoid (SCM), Scalene, pectoral muscles will be targeted for stretching exercises and deep neck flexors, Trapezius, Levator Scapula, Rhomboids will be targeted for strengthening exercises. The intensity of the exercises will be increased according to the weeks. Stretching exercises will be performed as a single set at the pain limit, maintaining the position of the muscle groups in the longest tolerable position for 30 seconds. In strengthening exercises, participants will hold the position for 5-10 seconds at the end of the movement. Moderate resistance elastic bands and free weights will be used for resistance exercises. In the following weeks, progression will be made in all exercises according to the patient's condition.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Complained of neck pain during work for at least 3 months,
• Neck pain severity of 3 and above according to the Numerical Pain Rating Scale,
• Office worker between the ages of 25-55,
• Full-time and regular desk worker for the last 3 years,
• Participants who use a computer at a desk for at least 3 hours a day will be included.

Exclusion Criteria

• Having neurological and rheumatologic chronic diseases,
• Receiving physical therapy in the last 6 months
• History of trauma to the upper extremities and spine,
• Having diagnoses such as thoracic outlet, cervical rib, vertebrobasilar artery insufficiency,
• History of cervical spine surgery,
• Having suffered a whiplash injury,
• Diagnosed cervical disc and spine pathologies (such as radiculopathy, myelopathy, fracture, infection, tumor, inflammatory diseases, osteoporosis)

• Minimum Eligible Age: 25 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 55 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

Istanbul University - Cerrahpasa

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Selin Uz Tuncay

MSc, PhD Student

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Gökşen Kuran Aslan, Prof

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Istanbul University - Cerrahpasa

Locations

Istanbul University- Cerrahpasa

Istanbul, , Turkey (Türkiye)

Countries

Turkey (Türkiye)

Other Identifiers

2024/06

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id