Terapia manual associada a cinesioterapia como tratamento da cervicalgia não específica: uma revisão narrativa da literatura

Abstract

Idiopathic or non-specific neck pain is pain identified in the cervical spine, related to musculoskeletal disorders, in the posterior region of the neck and upper scapula or upper dorsal area, without signs and symptoms related to radiculopathies. The simultaneous application of manual therapy with, for example, therapeutic exercises can contribute to increasing the range of movement in this region and reducing tissue irritability in the cervical region, enhancing the therapeutic effect. Objective: To investigate the effects of manual therapy associated with therapeutic exercises in reducing pain and disability in individuals with neck pain. Methods: This is a narrative review of the literature, carried out by an independent evaluator, conducted in the Physiotherapy Evidence Data base (PEDro) database. Study eligibility was determined using the elements of the PICOS strategy. Eligible studies for this literature review should include adults with neck pain without a specific cause, investigating interventions that address manual therapy associated with conservative treatment with a therapeutic exercise component. Results: The search in the PEDro database returned a total of 112 publications. After analyzing the titles and abstracts, 14 publications were selected to read the full text and seven articles were included. Six articles reported that the intervention group (manual therapy associated with kinesiotherapy) showed a significant reduction in pain and disability compared to the control group (kinesiotherapy). Conclusion: The studies included in this literature review provided preliminary evidence that cervical manual therapy added to therapeutic exercises can have effects on reducing pain, disability levels and other clinical outcomes evaluated than in the group that received only therapeutic exercises.