Effects of acupuncture on neuromuscular control of the head/J.Choi/J.Cholewicki

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Neck pain (NP) is one of the three most frequently reported musculoskeletal complaints, affecting 70% of individuals at some point in their lives. One treatment option that appears to be effective in relieving musculoskeletal pain in the head-neck area is osteopathic manipulative therapy (OMT). However, in most studies, the measures used to support these findings have been limited to subjective tests such as manual range of motion estimates by therapists, and survey statements provided by patients. Therefore, these research efforts are not sufficient to accurately determine the effectiveness of the therapy, characterize its mechanisms, or optimize treatment. The overall goal of the proposed project is to develop sensitive and objective clinical research tools for the assessment of motor control of the head-neck system. Objective control-oriented performance measures will be the basis for clinical research tool development. The first aim of this exploratory-type study will be to apply these tools to measure changes in position and force control of the head-neck system in patients with NP following OMT. The second aim will be to assess differences in position and force control of the head-neck system between patients with NP and healthy individuals. If these tools demonstrate differences between NP patients and healthy individuals and following OMT, more extensive research into the precise mechanisms of impairment and improvement from OMT can then be fully justified.