WHAT IS NECK PAIN AND WHAT CAUSES IT?

Neck pain may originate from any of the structures in the neck. These include muscles and nerves as well as spinal vertebrae and the cushioning discs in between. Neck pain may also come from regions near the neck, like the shoulder, jaw, head, and upper arms.

When your neck is sore, you may have difficulty moving it, especially to one side. Many people describe this as having a "stiff neck."  If neck pain involves nerves (for example, significant muscle spasm pinching on a nerve or a slipped disc pressing on a nerve), you may feel numbness, tingling, or weakness in your arm, hand, or elsewhere.

Common Causes   
Common neck pain is from muscle strain or tension. Usually, everyday activities are responsible. Such activities include bending over a desk for hours, having poor posture while watching TV or reading, placing your computer monitor too high or too low, sleeping in an uncomfortable position, or twisting and turning the neck in a jarring manner while exercising.

Traumatic accidents or falls can cause severe neck injuries like vertebral fractures, whiplash, blood vessel destruction, and even paralysis.

Other causes include loss of neck curve, a herniated disc, fibromyalgia (pain syndrome throughout the body), and arthritis. Meningitis, although much less common, can cause significant neck stiffness.

Your Neck Pain May be Caused by the Loss of Your Neck Curve.

Numerous recent medical studies have confirmed the link between chronic neck pain, tension headaches and migraines to a loss of the natural neck curve in the patient suffering from these headaches.

The Importance of the Curve in Your Neck

The spine in your neck should actually be curved, rather than straight.  The images on the right demonstrate what a normal neck curve looks like, and how the loss of curve results in a straight abnormal neck.  When you lose the curve in the neck, the discs in your neck begin to compress; this will lead to arthritis. In addition, the nerves that are near the discs become irritated (leading to neuritis) and the surrounding muscles are abnormally pulled (leading to myofascitis).  This loss of the neck curve will ultimately result in headaches and neck pain.  

Clinical Studies Support These Findings

     Several studies have investigated and scientifically linked the relationship of the loss of neck curve with the presence of chronic headache and neck pain.

     The Department of Neurology, Nagoya University School of Medicine in Japan conducted studies of 372 patients with tension headaches in comparison to 225 normal control subjects.  The majority of the patients with tension-type headache were found also to have straightened neck spine, leading to the conclusion of the study that the loss of the neck curve plays an important role in the development of tension-type headache and its accessory symptoms.

     The Center for the Study of Spinal Health, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto, Ontario completed a descriptive study that concluded that patients with both tension-type and migraine headaches demonstrated a high occurrence of:

a) back of the head and neck pain during headaches
b) tender points in the upper neck region
c) greatly reduced or absent neck curve and
d) x-ray evidence of joint dysfunction in the upper and lower neck spine

     The findings of this study concluded that healthy neck curve plays an important, but largely ignored role in the manifestation of adult benign headaches.

     There are also several studies that show that the loss of neck curve is involved in neck and shoulder muscle pain, the pain after whiplash injury and long-term degenerative neck arthritis. [Click Here for a full list of published studies illustrating the correlation between loss of healthy neck curve and headaches, neck pain, arthritic changes and radicular symptoms.]

     Study after study has shown that loss of healthy neck curve is a significant factor for the onset of neck pain caused by loss of the natural neck curve. This is a powerful conclusion for anyone who suffers from these chronic neck pain, because it means that the opposite is also true:  RESTORING THE NATURAL CURVE IN THE NECK MAY CURE AND PREVENT CHRONIC NECK PAIN.

A normal healthy posture when viewed from the side should reveal a position where the ear is balanced over the shoulder and the neck maintains a forward curved position. The normal neck curve is commonly reduced or altered due to trauma or poor postural habits. To return the neck curve toward a normal healthy position it is necessary to strengthen the muscles in the back of the neck and to stretch the damaged ligaments of the neck. The ligaments of the neck will “creep” toward a normal position just as the teeth do with braces.

A Cervical Curve Correction Device can Restore The Natural Neck Curve. 

    A Cervical Curve Correction Device is a tested and proven health care tool used to stretch and strengthen the connective tissues of the neck back to its natural curve.  A study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (MGPT) investigated cervical (neck) extension-compression traction with the purpose of establishing or increasing the cervical lordosis (neck curve) and concluded that an increase was in fact established in the majority of the treatment group. 

     The home CCCD shown below is a lightweight cost effective version of the CCCD the very CCCD used in research studies.  This product has been shown to effectively restore the neck curve in pre/post x-ray studies.

Step 1:

• Place the plastic foot bar at the edge of the skirt.
• Drape the strings and head harness over the slope of the base unit and under the attached U shaped bar.

(Below: Base Unit)

Step 2:   

• Sit at the bottom edge of the base unit.
• Place the plastic foot bar under your heels, while keeping your knees bent at a 90 angle.

(Below: Depiction of Step 2)

Step 3:

• Lie back and position the neck support beneath your neck

(Below: Depiction of Step 3)

Advanced Applications:

• Remove the snap-on U shaped bar.
• Lie back over the base unit as the top edge of your shoulders are beyond the top edge of the unit.
• Now follow the same direction as in step 4.
• This advanced set up will cause your head to pulled back beyond your shoulders.
• This set up will better correct that common forward head postural displacement.

(Below: Photo of an advanced application)

Step 4:

• Reach over your head and grab the head strap.
• Place the head strap on your forehead
• Slowly extend your bent legs. This will begin to apply some tension to your head and neck that will cause your head and neck to stretch backwards.

(Below: Depiction of Step 4)

Neck Exercise Instructions:

• Remove the foot bar, ropes and head strap. Remove the snap-on U shaped bar and slide the U shaped bar (clip ends first) inside the base unit allowing, the end with the neck roll to be outside the base unit at least halfway. 
• Lie face down on the base unit and place your head under the neck support so that the neck roll is touching the back part of your head.
• Take hold of the U shaped bars with both hands. Slowly extend your neck and head upwards toward the ceiling. Hold that position for at least 3 seconds and then return to a resting position. Repeat this extension movement at least 10-20 times or until the muscles in the back of your neck are fatigued.

(Below: Example of a Neck Exercise)

There are three important factors to consider when attempting to change the ligaments that maintain the curves of the spine:

Duration: The amount of time the ligaments of the spine are held in a stretched curved position. The longer you hold a stretched curved position in the spine, in a given session, the more ligament “creep” will occur, resulting in better curve correction. Each stretching session should last from ten to twenty minutes.
Intensity: The more tension you place on the spinal ligaments, the better curve correction you will create. Always try to tolerate as much tension as possible.
Frequency: The more sessions you apply a stretch to the spinal ligaments, the greater curve correction that will take place. You should stretch the spinal ligaments at least once a day. Stretching the spinal ligaments several times a day should be encouraged.
 
We suggest that you consider all these factors with each stretching session. You can vary these factors within each session.

Do not confuse this type of neck stretching with the neck traction method commonly used with physical therapy. The important difference with this method of stretching is to re-establish a curve in the neck where other methods straighten the neck.