NEW STUDY FINDS RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NECK SHAPE AND DISC ISSUES

Neck pain is one of the most common reasons people come and see a chiropractor. This doesn’t seem surprising when you consider that the annual prevalence of neck pain is up to 50%, and that then 50-85% of those with neck pain will have recurrent or persistent pain for as long as 5 years (1).
 
In this new study the authors found that In recent years, the lifestyle of the younger demographic has become increasingly sedentary with students and office workers spending long hours on their devices or sitting in front of their computers, resulting in a higher incidence of cervical (neck) curvature abnormalities.
 
This study found the degree of disc herniation is higher in patients who had lost their cervical lordosis (neck curve). A decreased degree of disc herniation was observed with increased cervical lordosis. In round numbers, a kyphotic cervical spine doubles the degree of disc herniation.
With the improvement of cervical lordotic curvature, the degree of disc herniation decreased and height of disc space increased.
 
The study confirms a strong correlation between cervical lordosis and disc herniation, and these results strongly indicate that restoring the cervical curvature is vital for improving cervical disc herniation.
 
The increase in texting, smart phone use, tablet and computer work has added significant weight-bearing stresses to the alignment, movement, and function of the spine. In round numbers, a cervical spine with no curve had double the risk of disc herniations.
 
So, if you are reading this, and you have neck pain or bad posture, or know someone who does, stop putting it off and get it checked out at Sprouting Health Chiropractic and Kinesiology.
 
 
References
 

1. Bryans, R., Decina, P., Descarreaux, M., Duranleau, M., Marcoux, H., Potter, B., Ruegg, R.P., Shaw, L., Watkin, R. and White, E., 2014. Evidence-based guidelines for the chiropractic treatment of adults with neck pain. Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics, 37(1), pp.42-63.
2. Gao, K., Zhang, J., Lai, J., Liu, W., Lyu, H., Wu, Y., Lin, Z. and Cao, Y., 2019. Correlation between cervical lordosis and cervical disc herniation in young patients with neck pain. Medicine, 98(31).