The Effect Of Myofascial Release Techniques On Functionality And Pain İn Violinists With Non-Specific Neck Pain

June 16, 2026 updated by: FİLİZ EYÜBOĞLU, Uskudar University
Participants will undergo an 8-week myofascial release (MFR) program consisting of therapist-administered MFR sessions (45 minutes, twice weekly) and self-myofascial release exercises (20 minutes, three times weekly). The interventions will target myofascial restrictions in the neck, shoulder, and related fascial structures to reduce pain and improve mobility.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

24

Phase

  • 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

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Istanbul
      • Umraniye, Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye)
        • Uskudar University

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Individuals who have been playing the violin professionally for at least 2 years
  • Individuals with non-specific neck pain for the last 3 months
  • Individuals who practice the violin for more than 10 hours per week on average

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Individuals with signs of spinal stenosis or radiculopathy in the cervical region
  • Individuals with a history of surgery or serious trauma to the neck, shoulder, or back within the past 1 year
  • Individuals diagnosed with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (e.g., Ankylosing Spondylitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis) or with a history of active malignancy Individuals with contraindications to myofascial release (MFR), including active skin infection, open wounds, or severe osteoporosis
  • Individuals using non-routine analgesic medications during the study period or participating in any concurrent physical therapy program

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
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Myofascial Release Techniques Group
Participants will receive a 8-week myofascial release (MFR) program consisting of therapist-applied sessions twice weekly (45 minutes) targeting cervical and shoulder fascia, combined with a self-MFR home program three times per week (20 minutes) using massage balls. The aim is to reduce fascial restrictions and neck pain in violinists with non-specific neck pain.
Other: Myofascial Release Technique
Participants will receive a 8-week myofascial release (MFR) program consisting of therapist-applied sessions twice weekly (45 minutes) targeting cervical and shoulder fascia, combined with a self-MFR home program three times per week (20 minutes) using massage balls. The aim is to reduce fascial restrictions and neck pain in violinists with non-specific neck pain.
No Intervention: Control Group
Participants will be young adult violinists aged 18-25 with similar professional violin experience and non-specific neck pain related to instrument playing. During the 8-week study period, they will not receive any manual therapy, exercise program, or specific neck treatment. They will be instructed to maintain their usual practice routines, ergonomics, and daily activities without modification and to avoid any additional physiotherapy interventions. Outcome assessments will be performed at baseline and at the end of the study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Visual Analog Scale
Time Frame: Baseline and 8 weeks post-intervention
Visual Analog Scale (VAS) is a patient-reported outcome measure used to assess pain intensity. It is typically a 10 cm line anchored with "no pain" at one end and "worst imaginable pain" at the other. Patients mark a point on the line that represents their current pain level. The score is determined by measuring the distance from the "no pain" anchor, with higher scores indicating greater pain intensity. It is widely used due to its simplicity, sensitivity, and reliability.
Baseline and 8 weeks post-intervention
Neck Disability Index
Time Frame: Baseline and 8 weeks post-intervention
Neck Disability Index (NDI) is a patient-reported outcome measure used to assess disability and functional limitations in individuals with neck pain. It consists of 10 items related to daily activities (e.g., pain intensity, personal care, lifting, reading, work, sleeping). Each item is scored from 0 to 5, with a total score ranging from 0 to 50; higher scores indicate greater disability. It is widely used in clinical and research settings due to its good reliability and validity.
Baseline and 8 weeks post-intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Uskudar University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Helpful Links

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)

April 24, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

May 6, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

July 10, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 16, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 16, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 22, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 22, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 16, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • UskudarUUUU

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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