Effectiveness of Specific Strength Training Combined With Static Stretching of the Posterior Neck in Office Workers With Chronic Neck Pain: A Clinical Trial

Effectiveness of Specific Strength Training Combined With Static Stretching of the Posterior Neck in Office Workers With Chronic Neck Pain: A Clinical Trial

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of strength training combined with stretching compared to specific strength training in office workers with chronic neck pain.

Methods: A single blind randomized clinical trial will be conducted. Participants will be adult of both sexes with sedentary office work and chronic neck pain.

The intervention will consist of a strength training program for the neck and shoulder muscles combined with static stretching of the neck, while the comparison group will only perform strength training. In addition, both groups will receive ergonomics guidelines.

Short-term, medium-term, and long-term evaluations will be performed using the Northwick Park Neck Pain Questionnaire (NPQ), Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia (TSK).

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adults aged between 18 and 70 years.
• Workers from companies in the Community of Madrid.
• Sedentary employees who work at least 20 hours in the office.
• Subjects with nonspecific chronic neck pain.
• All individuals who have decided to participate voluntarily after having read and signed the patient information sheet and the informed consent form.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Arterial hypertension (systolic BP >160, diastolic BP >100) or cardiovascular diseases.
• Diagnosed metabolic disorders.
• Symptomatic disc herniation or severe cervical spine disorders.
• Postoperative conditions.
• History of severe trauma to the neck and shoulder region.
• Pregnancy.
• Subjects with a body mass index (BMI) greater than 29.9 kilograms per square meter (kg/m2).
• Presence of physical or mental impairments that prevent the correct execution of the interventions and/or their corresponding evaluation.
• Having undergone surgery in the previous six months.
• Participating in parallel research studies.
• Not having a permanent job position.
• Using two monitors.
• Using a laptop.