Combined Effects of Virtual Reality and Motor Imagery in Patients With Non-specific Neck Pain

Not Applicable

Recruiting

• Conditions: Cervical Pain; Pain; Kinesiophobia
• Interventions: Other: Virtual Reality; Other: Routine Physical therapy; Other: Motor Imagery

• Registration Number: NCT06397157
• Lead Sponsor: Riphah International University

Brief Summary

Non-specific neck pain is the most common musculoskeletal symptom which can cause limited cervical mobility, impaired functional status and stress at work. Virtual reality and motor imagery are unique technologies which have beneficial effects on the treatment of non-specific neck pain. Virtual reality is a simulated 3D environment that enables users to explore and interact with a virtual surrounding while motor imagery (MI) is a dynamic mental process of an action, without its actual motor execution. This study aims to investigate the combined effects of Virtual Reality (VR) and Motor Imagery Techniques (MI) with Routine Physical Therapy (RPT) in patients with Non-specific neck pain. This randomized clinical trial will be carried at Railway General Hospital, Rawalpindi on 93 participants meeting the inclusion criteria included in the study through probability convenience sampling technique. 3 groups of participants assigned ramdomly will receive interventions for three days a week for 6 weeks. Group A will receive virtual reality (VR) and motor imagery (MI) along with routine physical therapy for . Group B participants will receive VR along with routine physical therapy while Group C will receive MI along with routine physical therapy. Total treatment time will be 40 minutes. Outcome measure tools will be Numeric pain rating scale to measure pain, the Tampa scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK) for the measurement of kinesiophobia and Neck disability index for disability and functional status.

Detailed Description

Non-specific neck pain is the most common musculoskeletal symptom which can cause limited cervical mobility, impaired functional status and stress at work. Despite of the duration, neck pain can impair functional capacity, quality of life and can cause worry, anxiety and depression. Virtual reality and motor imagery are unique technologies which have beneficial effects on the treatment of non-specific neck pain. Virtual reality is a simulated 3D environment that enables users to explore and interact with a virtual surrounding while motor imagery (MI) is a dynamic mental process of an action, without its actual motor execution. This study aims to investigate the combined effects of Virtual Reality(VR) and Motor Imagery Techniques (MI) with Routine Physical Therapy (RPT) in patients with Non-specific neck pain.

This randomized clinical trial will be carried at Railway General Hospital ,Rawalpinidi .93 participants meeting the inclusion criteria will be included in this study through a non-probability convenience sampling technique.

Participants will be randomly assigned into 3 groups using computer generated method. All the groups receive interventions for three days a week for 6 weeks. Group A will receive virtual reality (VR) and motor imagery (MI) along with routine physical therapy for . Group B participants will receive VR along with routine physical therapy while Group C will receive MI along with routine physical therapy. Total treatment time will be 40 minutes.

Outcome measure tools will be Numeric pain rating scale to measure pain, the Tampa scale of kinesiophobia (TSK) for the measurement of kinesiophobia and Neck disability index for disability and functional status. The data will be collected at baseline before the treatment of the patient, Follow-up on the 3rd week and post treatment measure on the 6th week to measure the outcome measures. Data will be analysed by SPSS version 26. Statistical significance will be set at p=0.05. The normality of data will be checked by using Kolmogorov- Smirnov test. For the between group analysis of parametric data, one way ANOVA will be used, while Kruskal-Wallis test will be applied for non-parametric data. For within group comparison repeated measure ANOVA will be applied for parametric data, for non-parametric data Friedman ANOVA will be applied.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2023-12-10
• Study First Submitted: 2024-04-29
• Study First Submitted QC: 2024-04-29
• Study First Posted: 2024-05-02
• Status Verified: 2024-06
• Primary Completion: 2024-06-10
• Last Update Submitted: 2024-06-11
• Last Update Posted: 2024-06-13
• Study Completion: 2024-07-10

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 93

Inclusion Criteria

• Age of the patients should be 18-50 years
• Both females and males are included
• Patient should have a consistent pain for 3 months or more.
• Patient having non-specific neck pain.

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Exclusion Criteria

• Specific neck pain caused by metastasis, neoplasia, infectious or inflammatory disorders, bone fractures or traumatic precedents with neck injuries (2)
• Positive neurological signs or evidence of spinal compression (abnormal diffuse sensitivity, hyperreflexia, or diffuse weakness)
• Cervical osteoarthritis
• Spondylarthritis
• Neck pain associated with vertigo (vestibular involvement)
• Neck pain associated with whiplash injuries
• Previous cervical surgeries (2)
• Headaches before the onset of neck pain and without cervical origin
• Inability to provide informed consent

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Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Virtual Reality+Routine physical therapy	Routine Physical therapy	Participants in Group A will receive Virtual Reality (VR) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Virtual Reality+Motor Imagery+Routine physical therapy	Motor Imagery	Participants in Group A will receive Virtual Reality (VR) and Motor Imagery (MI) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Virtual Reality+Motor Imagery+Routine physical therapy	Routine Physical therapy	Participants in Group A will receive Virtual Reality (VR) and Motor Imagery (MI) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Motor Imagery+ Routine physical therapy	Motor Imagery	Participants in Group A will receive Motor Imagery(MR) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Virtual Reality+Motor Imagery+Routine physical therapy	Virtual Reality	Participants in Group A will receive Virtual Reality (VR) and Motor Imagery (MI) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Motor Imagery+ Routine physical therapy	Routine Physical therapy	Participants in Group A will receive Motor Imagery(MR) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.
Virtual Reality+Routine physical therapy	Virtual Reality	Participants in Group A will receive Virtual Reality (VR) training with Routine physical therapy for every alternate day (3 days per week) for 6 weeks. Total number of sessions will be 18.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS)	6 weeks	In a Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NRS), patients are asked to circle the number between 0 and 10, 0 and 20 or 0 and 100 that fits best to their pain intensity. Zero usually represents no pain at all whereas the upper limit represents 'the worst pain ever possible'. Numerical Pain Rating Scales have shown high correlations with other pain-assessment tools in several studies.
The Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK)	6 weeks	The Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia (TSK) is a 17-item questionnaire that quantifies fear of movement. The 17 item TSK total scores range from 17 to 68 where the lowest 17 means no or negligible Kinesiophobia, and the higher scores indicate an increasing degree of Kinesiophobia.
Neck Disability Index (NDI)	6 weeks	A modification of the Oswestry Low Back Pain Index was conducted producing a 10-item scaled questionnaire entitled the Neck Disability Index (NDI) for the measurement of disability and functional status. Each section is scored on a 0 to 5 rating scale, in which zero means 'No pain' and 5 means 'Worst imaginable pain'. All section scores are then totaled. Scoring is reported on a 0-50 scale, 0 being the best possible score and 50 being the worst.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Railway General Hospital ,Rawalpindi; 🇵🇰 Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan