Efficacy of conventional multimodal therapy in the management of non-specific cervical pain in young people aged 18 to 24 years
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v71.112927Keywords:
Neck pain, physical therapy modalities, transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation, massage, pain perception , musculoskeletal pain, cervical vertebraeAbstract
Introduction. Non-specific neck pain is a recurrent public-health issue that affects 48 %–78 % of university students, undermining both their well-being and academic performance. Although various physiotherapeutic techniques can relieve these symptoms, comparative evidence on their effectiveness in this population remains scarce.
Objective. This study compared the efficacy of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and massage therapy, each embedded in a multimodal protocol, for treating non-specific neck pain in university students aged 18–24 years.
Methodology. A longitudinal randomised experimental design was applied. Eighteen participants were allocated to one of three groups: (1) standard multimodal therapy; (2) multimodal + TENS; and (3) multimodal + massage therapy. All protocols incorporated thermotherapy and stretching. Pain intensity (Visual Analogue Scale, VAS), neck disability (Neck Disability Index, NDI) and craniovertebral angle were assessed before and after the intervention.
Results. All groups showed reductions in pain intensity, decreases in NDI scores and increases in craniovertebral angle. However, no statistically significant differences emerged among the treatments, indicating that none outperformed the others.
Discussion. The evidence supports incorporating electrophysical or manual agents as adjuncts to multimodal interventions for managing cervical pain.
Conclusions. Adding TENS or massage therapy to a multimodal regimen yields benefits comparable to those of the standard protocol for managing non-specific neck pain in university students. Treatment choice can therefore be based on resource availability and patient preference. Replication with larger samples and longer follow-up is recommended to confirm these findings.Principio del formulario
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Copyright (c) 2025 Sebastián Andrés Astorga Verdugo, German Rojas Cabezas, Soledad Patricia González Silva, Reinaldo Sáez Selaive, Aldo Martinez Araya, Hector Lara Arriagada, Ignacia Alcantar Kiermann, Agustin Peña Lagos, Hans Gaete Tapia
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