Strengthening is not commonly used in neck pain treatment and rehabilitation, however athletes may place large demands on their neck during training and play that require a high level of strength or endurance.

When should you include strength training in your rehabilitation? What patients will benefit from strength training? How can you incorporate strengthening into your treatment?

In episode 73 of the Physio Edge podcast, we explore the role of neck strengthening with Kay Robinson, Physiotherapist working with Australian sailing, and previously with the British Olympic Skeleton team.

In the podcast you will discover:

• Objective assessment of patients with neck pain
• Range of movement and strength tests you can use with your neck pain patients
• How to assess neck strength in your patients
• Indications for strength training
• Is strength training suitable in the early stages of neck pain rehabilitation?
• Early-stage cervical spine rehabilitation exercises you can use
• Exercise progressions to improve neck strength
• Neck strengthening in concussion
• Is neck strength training suitable for whiplash patients?
• Aspects incorporated into a typical neck strengthening program

Kay Robinson will also be presenting at the 2017 Sports Injury virtual conference. Her conference presentation on neck strengthening will discuss:

• How to incorporate neck training into rehabilitation post injury
• Neck strengthening for injury prevention
• How to make exercise patient or sport specific
• Other consideration with neck training
• Case studies

Links associated with this episode:

• Kay Robinson on Twitter - @kaylourob
• Kay Robinson at Total Physiotherapy
• David Pope on Twitter
• Clinical Edge on Facebook
• Have a free trial Clinical Edge membership
• Book - Sports Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation: Integrating Medicine and Science for Performance Solutions
• High-Performance Training for Sports

Articles associated with this episode:

• Durall. 2012. Therapeutic Exercise for Athletes With Nonspecific Neck Pain: A Current Concepts Review.

• Falla et al. 2003. An electromyographic analysis of the deep cervical flexor muscles in performance of craniocervical flexion.

• Falla et al. 2007. Recruitment of the deep cervical flexor muscles during a postural-correction exercise performed in sitting.

• Jull et al. 2009. The effect of therapeutic exercise on activation of the deep cervical flexor muscles in people with chronic neck pain.

Other episodes of interest:

• PE 013 - Cervical Spine Artery and VBI Testing with Roger Kerry

• 5 Minute Physio tip - Manual therapy for the cervical spine - Is there any evidence?

• 5 Minute Physio tip - Contraindications and red flags to cervical spine manual therapy.