neck pain

Busy london city life constantly challenges our upright postures. Prolonged working hours sitting down hunched over workstations or prolonged travelling on public transport leads to postural changes which exert a greater magnitude of stress through the soft tissue structures of the neck leading to the development of pain.

Not surprisingly, neck pain is the second most common condition that presents to our city based (EC2) chiropractic clinic whether this originates insidiously from postural overload, secondary to trauma i.e. "whiplash" or “wear and tear.”

In addition, we frequently encounter symptoms which relate to neck conditions i.e.headaches and “trapped nerves” whereby the neck is commonly found to be the source of the referring pain.

Whilst neck pain is less common than low back pain, it is estimated that approximately two thirds of the population will experience neck pain at some time. The prevalance is highest in middle age with women being affected more times than men .

[1]. [2][1][2]

How we can help

At the first consultation, the chiropractors at Bodymotion Chiropractic will take a full case history, evaluate your posture and perform specific orthopaedic and neurological tests to ascertain which structures may be causing your neck pain. From here, a diagnosis or cause of the neck pain will be explained and in most cases treatment can then be initiated.

If you do not have a condition that is likely to respond well to chiropractic treatment then we will make the appropriate referral to your General Pracitioner or one of our Medical Consulting Team

Evidence to support the use of chiropractic to treat neck pain include a study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics which showed that chiropractic treatment for acute neck pain reduced pain levels and activity restriction with an overall patient satisfaction rate of 94% (Haneline, 2006). Furthermore, a report published in a journal called Spine by the Bone and Joint Decade Task Force on Neck Pain recommends manipulation and mobilisation as a safe, effective and appropriate treatment approach for neck pain (Guzman et al, 2008). In addition, The Bronfort Report 2010 also supports chiropractic intervention in the treatment of Chronic neck pain as "an effective treatment choice".

There are many different causes of neck pain. The list of diagnoses given below and subsequent explanations are for educational purposes. We do not purport to treat all the conditions and this information should not be considered a replacement for a full medical examination. Should you wish to discuss any of these conditions with our chiropractors please do not hesitate to phone the clinic on 020 7374 2272 or email enquiries@body-motion.co.uk

1)Cassidy D, Carroll L. The Saskatchewan health and back pain survey: the prevalence of neck pain and related disability in Saskatchewan adults. Spine 1998;23:1689–1698. 

2) Fejer R, Kyvik KO, Hartvigsen J. The prevalence of neck pain in the world population: a systematic critical review of the literature. Eur Spine J 2006;15:834–848.