Assessing Cervical Sensorimotor Control With VR in Chronic Neck Pain

Cervical Sensorimotor Control Assessment Using a Virtual Reality System in Individuals With and Without Chronic Neck Pain

To develop a cervical SMC VR assessment system incorporating different SMC tests and to compare cervical SMC performance using this self-developed VR assessment system in individuals with and without CNP

Inclusion Criteria:

1. For patients with chronic neck pain:

   • Pain was unilateral or bilateral between the superior nuchal line and 1st thoracic vertebra,
   • Neck pain persisting for 3 months and above,
   • Average pain intensity of last pain episode was between 2 and 8 based on the numerical rating scale (NRS)

2. Healthy asymptomatic adults:

   • Do not have any complaints of current pain and impairments of neuromusculoskeletal systems within the last 6 months

Exclusion Criteria:

• acute or the first onset of neck pain
• previous fracture or surgery of the spine
• diagnosed cardiopulmonary diseases, for example, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary tuberculosis, asthma, chronic bronchitis, pulmonary emphysema
• diagnosed gastrointestinal and abdominal conditions which may interfere daily activities within the past 6 months
• medical conditions that may affect balance and study procedures (e.g. neurological diseases, vestibular disorders, malignant tumors)
• metabolic diseases such as anemia and diabetes
• smoking, plan to pregnant or in pregnancy
• psychological disorders (affect questionnaire responses)
• unable to walk independently
• Corrected visual abnormalities or individuals unable to wear contact lenses for vision correction due to the potential interference of wearing VR head-mounted display with glasses