Altered interpretation of neck proprioceptive signals in persons with subclinical recurrent neck pain.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether subjects with subclinical recurrent neck pain have an altered interpretation of neck proprioceptive signals. DESIGN A comparative group design. SUBJECTS Twelve subjects with recurrent neck pain and 12 control subjects. METHODS The shoulder, head, trunk and whole-body position were measured under the following conditions: active and passive elevation and depression of the right shoulder and vibration of the trapezius muscle. RESULTS During passive shoulder movements both groups moved their head in the opposite direction (p<0.05). During passive elevation subjects with recurrent neck pain showed a significant over-appraisal of shoulder position. Both groups responded similarly to active movements. Subjects with recurrent neck pain and control subjects showed similar trunk and head-to-trunk movements during shoulder movements. Subjects with recurrent neck pain, however, made larger movements compared with healthy subjects (p<0.05). During trapezius muscle vibration similar whole-body movements were found in both groups. CONCLUSION These results show a modified interpretation of neck proprioceptive signals in subjects with recurrent neck pain and may reflect an offset in the egocentric reference frame or a decreased capacity to switch between reference frames. Better insight into these mechanisms might lead to better evaluation and treatment of subjects with recurrent neck pain and to a reduction in recurrent episodes.