Table 1.
Personal and clinical characteristics of women with chronic neck pain for at least 12 weeks. Values are means (standard deviations) unless stated otherwise
| Characteristic | Dynamic muscle training group (n=135) | Relaxation training group (n=128) | Control group (n=130) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 45 (6.6) | 43 (7.3) | 44 (7.4) |
| No (%) with college education | 58 (43) | 51 (40) | 52 (40) |
| No (%) married | 86 (64) | 79 (62) | 82 (63) |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 25 (4.1) | 25 (3.7) | 25 (3.9) |
| No (%) performing physical activity ≥3 times a week | 59 (44) | 44 (34) | 53 (41) |
| Work related features: | |||
| No (%) very or quite satisfied with own work | 95 (70) | 101 (79) | 105 (81) |
| Work stress (scale 1-5)* | 30 (5.9) | 30 (6.2) | 29 (5.5) |
| Office work (years) | 23 (7.8) | 20 (8.6) | 21 (8.7) |
| No (%) performing sedentary work >6 hours a day | 103 (76) | 96 (75) | 95 (73) |
| No (%) working with computer >6 hours a day | 45 (33) | 50 (39) | 46 (35) |
| Neck pain and disability at work: | |||
| Pain (years) | 11 (5.7) | 11 (6.3) | 10 (6.6) |
| Pain that limits work (years) | 3.3 (3.5) | 2.3 (2.6) | 2.9 (3.9) |
| Pain intensity (scale 0-10)† | 4.8 (2.3) | 4.8 (2.3) | 4.1 (2.2) |
| Neck disability (scale 0-80)‡ | 29 (15.4) | 29 (14.3) | 26 (13.8) |
| Normal life limited by pain (scale 0-10)§ | 2.6 (2.3) | 2.7 (2.2) | 2.3 (2.0) |
| Work limited by pain (scale 0-10)¶ | 3.3 (2.3) | 3.3 (2.3) | 2.8 (2.1) |
| Subjective work ability (scale 0-10)* * | 7.7 (1.1) | 7.6 (1.5) | 7.8 (1.2) |
| Depression index (scale 1-4)†† | 16 (4.4) | 16 (4.9) | 16 (4.6) |
| Cervical range of motion (degrees): | |||
| Rotation‡‡ | 140 (23.7) | 141 (18.6) | 144 (19.2) |
| Lateral flexion‡‡ | 77 (17.2) | 76 (15.2) | 77 (15.3) |
| Flexion and extension§§ | 111 (22.1) | 114 (19.5) | 113 (19.2) |
| Dynamic muscle strength¶¶ | 40 (15.9) | 41 (19.9) | 40 (16.4) |
| No (%) absent from work due to neck pain >7 days | 16 (12) | 15 (12) | 16 (12) |
*
Total score 12 to 60 (higher scores, more stress).
†
0 (no pain) to 10 (unbearable pain).
‡
0 (no pain or handicap) to 80 (maximum pain and handicap).
§
0 (no limitations) to 10 (maximum handicap).
¶
0 (no limitations) to 10 (total disability to work).
* *
0 (total disability to work) to 10 (work ability at its best).
††
Total score 10 to 40 (higher scores, more depression).
‡‡
Left and right sides summed.
§§
Flexion and extension summed.
¶¶
0 to 100 lifts on military press with 7.5 kg dumbbells.