Interferential Current and Therapeutic Exercise Program in Chronic Neck Pain

February 4, 2020 updated by: Alberto Marcos Heredia-Rizo, University of Seville

Efficacy of a Interferential Current and Therapeutic Exercise Program in Subjects With Chronic Neck Pain

Objectives: To analyze the number of sessions needed to achieve a positive impact after combining interferential current therapy and therapeutic exercise, compared with therapeutic exercise alone, on self-reported pain, disability and range of motion in subjects with chronic neck pain.

Design: A randomized, single-blind, controlled trial. Subjects: Patients between 18 and 65 years old, with idiopathic chronic neck pain.

Methods: The experimental group who will perform a combined treatment using Interferential current therapy and therapeutic exercise for two weeks. The control group will receive the same program of therapeutic exercise during the same period of time.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
60

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Spain
      • Sevilla, Spain, 41009
        • University of Sevilla

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Nonspecific mechanical neck pain (chronic neck pain diagnosed by a physician)
  • Age between 18 and 65 years old
  • Both males and females
  • Non apprehension to electrotherapy (determined by the Personal Psychological Apprehension scale- EAPP)
  • Self-reported pain higher than 2 in the 11-point Numeric Pain Rating Scale

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Metallic implants in the vertebral column
  • Apprehension to electrotherapy (a score >45 points in EAPP)
  • Cervicogenic headache
  • Cervicogenic Dizziness
  • Neck pain associated with neurological deficits
  • Unexplained fever
  • Cervical surgery associated to persistent pain
  • Specific diagnostics (cervical myelopathy, cervical stenosis, osteomyopathy)
  • Other diagnostics such as visceral pain referred to the neck or non-cervical cause.
  • Involvement in litigation
  • Manual treatment for the neck-shoulder area in the last month before data collection

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: IFC and Therapeutic Exercise Program
Patients will receive 10 sessions for two weeks. The duration of each session will be of approximately one hour. Participants will receive treatment with Interferential current therapy plus a program of therapeutic exercise focused on the neck region
Other: Interferential Current and Therapeutic Exercise Program

The Interferential Current Program will be based on a bipolar application using the Sonopuls 692 device (Enraf Nonius, Rotterdam, The Netherlands). The current parameters will be: a) 4000Hz carrier frequency; and b) 60 Hz AMF with a modulation frequency of 90 Hz. The intensity of the current will be adapted to the sensitivity of each patient.

The Therapeutic Exercise Program will be applied by a physiotherapist and will consist of:

  1. Ergonomic advices on reducing repetitive movements and/or maintained positions
  2. A protocol of active physiotherapy for neck and shoulder muscles. This protocol will include: active stretching exercises; isometric muscle strengthening exercises; reeducation of the ocular and neck muscles with control retraining exercises
Active Comparator: Therapeutic Exercise Program
Patients will receive 10 sessions for two weeks. The duration of each session will be of approximately one hour.This group will only receive the same therapeutic exercise program.
Other: Therapeutic Exercise Program

The Therapeutic Exercise Program will be applied by a physiotherapist and will consist of:

  1. Ergonomic advices on reducing repetitive movements and/or maintained positions
  2. A protocol of active physiotherapy for neck and shoulder muscles. This protocol will include: active stretching exercises; isometric muscle strengthening exercises; reeducation of the ocular and neck muscles with control retraining exercises

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Neck pain intensity
Time Frame: From baseline to immediately after treatment
Participants will rate the intensity of their neck pain at rest on an 11-point numeric pain rating scale, where 0 is no pain and 11 maximum pain. The subjects will be ask to indicate the pain levels that they experienced before treatment and after treatment.
From baseline to immediately after treatment
Disability
Time Frame: From baseline to immediately after treatment

The Neck Disability Index (NDI) will be used in the Spanish version to measure level of disability of the neck area during the daily life activities.

where under 9 denotes No Disability; from 10 to 29 denotes Slight Disability; from 30 to 49 denotes Moderate Disability; from 50 to 69 denotes Severe Disability and more tan 70 denote Complete Disability.
From baseline to immediately after treatment

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Range of movement (ROM)
Time Frame: From baseline to immediately after treatment
The secondary outcome measure will be the active cervical range of motion assessed with the CROM device (Performance Attainment Associates, Lindstrom, MN). The measurements will be made separately for each direction and in a standard sequence: flexion, extension, right lateral flexion, left lateral flexion, right rotation and left rotation. Two measurements will be recorded for each movement and the average of the two measurements will be used in the analysis of results
From baseline to immediately after treatment

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Seville

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Alberto Heredia-Rizo, PhD, Physiotherapy Department, University of Seville, spain

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 13, 2019

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
October 25, 2019

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 15, 2019

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
June 5, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
June 5, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
June 7, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 5, 2020

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 4, 2020

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2020

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • IFC Therapy and Exercise

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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