Comparison of Chiropractic and Physiotherapy in Chronic Neck Pain (KFA-KT)

July 23, 2026 updated by: Ozden Baskan, Istanbul Rumeli University

Comparison of Conventional Physiotherapy and Conventional Physiotherapy Combined With Chiropractic in Patients With Non-Specific Neck Pain

Chronic neck pain will be a common condition that can negatively affect daily activities, mobility, and overall quality of life. This study will aim to investigate whether adding chiropractic treatment to standard physiotherapy will improve outcomes in individuals with long-standing neck pain.

A total of 40 adults between the ages of 20 and 65 with complaints of neck pain will be included in the study. Participants will be randomly assigned to two groups. One group will receive chiropractic treatment in addition to standard physiotherapy, while the other group will receive only standard physiotherapy. Standard physiotherapy will include TENS, heat therapy, and neck massage.

The treatments will be administered over a total of 7 sessions, twice a week. Before and after the treatment period, all participants will undergo a series of assessments. These will measure pain levels, neck function, muscle strength, range of motion, and quality of life.

The aim of this study will be to determine whether adding chiropractic treatment to physiotherapy will provide additional benefits in reducing pain and improving function and quality of life in individuals with chronic neck pain.

Study Overview

Status

Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

40

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

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
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being between 18-65 years of age
  • Having neck pain that has lasted for least three months
  • Having a Visual Analog Scale (VAS) score of at least 3

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients not aged 18-60 years

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: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: physiotherapy
The group received 20 minutes of TENS and 20 minutes of hotpack therapy.
Other: Physiotherapy
A 20-minute TENS session and a 20-minute hot pack application will be applied twice a week for 7 weeks
Active Comparator: Physiotherapy + Chiropractic Treatment
Other: PT+ Chiropractic treatment
The group will receive a 20-minute TENS session and a 20-minute hot pack application and neck massage. This will be followed by chiropractic treatment.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Pain Assessment
Time Frame: From enrollment and at the end of treatment (at 4 weeks)
The Pain Visual Analog Scale (VAS) is a unidimensional measure of pain intensity. It typically consists of a 10-centimeter horizontal line anchored by two descriptors: "no pain" (0) and "worst imaginable pain" (10). Participants are asked to mark a point on the line that best represents their current level of pain. The distance from the "no pain" anchor to the marked point is measured in centimeters or millimeters and recorded as the pain score, with higher scores indicating greater pain intensity.
From enrollment and at the end of treatment (at 4 weeks)
Disability Assessment
Time Frame: Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks
The Neck Disability Index is the most widely used and most strongly validated tool for assessing self-assessed disability in patients with neck pain. It has been used effectively in both clinical and research settings in the treatment of this very common problem.Each question is scored on a scale of 0-5; the total score is expressed as a percentage between 0-100 (or 0-50 points).
Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks
Joint Position sense assessment
Time Frame: Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks

It is an objective test used to assess the proprioceptive function (position sense) of the neck.

It is used to measure whether cervical proprioception is impaired in individuals with neck pain and the effectiveness of interventions such as manual therapy (Cheng et al., 2010).

Required Materials: Laser pointer or reflective marker. Headband (to secure the laser) Target point or reference frame (A point or circle can be drawn on the wall.) Goniometer or motion analyzer (Optional.)
Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks
Fear avoidance questionnaire
Time Frame: Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks
It aims to comprehensively assess the cognitive, behavioral, and sensory components of fear-avoidance behavior in patients with painful medical conditions. Each item is scored on a 6-point Likert scale from 0, "Strongly disagree," to 5, "Strongly agree." The total score indicates one of several severity levels ranging from 0 to 100. The best score is 0 and the worst score is 100.
Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Quality of life assessment
Time Frame: Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks
The SF-36 measures eight scales: physical function, physical role, bodily pain, general health, vitality, social function, sensory role, and mental health. Component analyses showed that there are two distinct concepts measured by the SF-36: a physical dimension represented by the Physical Component Summary and a dimension represented by the Mental Component Summary. All scales contribute to the scoring of both physical and mental measures at different rates. The SF-36 comprises eight subscales (physical functioning, physical role functioning, emotional role functioning, energy, mental health, social functioning, body pain, and general health), and a separate score is calculated for each subscale. The scores for the subscales range from 0 to 100. Higher scores on the scale indicate an improvement in quality of life, whilst lower scores indicate a decline in quality of life
Baseline and at end of treatment, 4 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Istanbul Rumeli University

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 (Estimated)

July 25, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

August 25, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

August 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 21, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 23, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

July 27, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 27, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 23, 2026

Last Verified

July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2026/3

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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