Neuromuscular ReEducation

D. Biondi, DO, is Director, Headache Management Program, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, and an Instructor in Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA. Cervicogenic headache: Diagnostic evaluation and treatment strategies “Successful treatment of cervicogenic headache usually requires a multifaceted approach. Physical Therapy is an important therapeutic modality for rehabilitation of cervicogenic headache”.(Pain Management Rounds Harvard Medical School & Massachusetts General Hospital 2004; vol. 1, issue 8).

N. Bogduk, PhD, Cervicogenic headache: and assessment of the evidence on clinical diagnosis, envasive tests, and treatment “For probable cervicogenic headache, exercises with or without manual therapy seems to be the best option among conservative therapies”.Lancet Neurol. 2009;10:959-68.

D. Biondi, DO, Cervicogenic headache: Diagnostic evaluation and treatment strategies
“Physical treatment is better tolerated when initiated with gentle muscle stretching and
aerobic conditioning”.(Pain Management Rounds Harvard Medical School & Massachusetts General Hospital 2004;vol. 1, issue 8).

N. Pinsault, PhD, Effects of vision and tactile stimulation of the neck on postural control during unperturbed stance and cervical joint position sense in young asymptomatic adults. “Altogether our results suggest that subjects were able to take advantage of vision and increased neck cutaneous information to improve postural control and cervical joint position sense”.(Spine 2010; 35:1589-94).

R. Gallagher, MD, Cervicogenic Headache; A special report. “Several times daily the patient can do simple and gentle stretches to allow muscles to reach physiologic length and maintain normal function”.
(Expert Rev. Neurotherapeutics 2007;7(10) 1279-83).

M. Nordin, Dr Med Sc, Assessment of neck pain and its associated disorders. (359 articles reviewed, 95 admissible) “There was no evidence that specific MRI findings are associated with neck pain, cervicogenic headache, or whiplash exposure. No evidence supports using cervical provocative discography, anesthetic facet, or medial branch blocks in evaluating neck pain.
There is support for subjective self-report in monitoring a patients’ response to treatment”.
(Spine 2008;33:4S,S1-S220).

M. Friedrich, MD, Long term effect of a combined exercise and motivational program on the level of disability of patients with chronic low back pain. OBJECTIVE: To determine the long-term effect of a combined exercise and motivational program on the level of a disability of patients with chronic and recurrent low back pain. MOTIVATIONAL PROGRAM: Consisted of extensive counseling, information strategies, regular and consistent exercise, and patients reporting all exercises they had performed in an exercise diary. CONCLUSION: “The cumulative effect of the treatment in the motivational group was more than twice as much as in the control group. Five years after the supervised combined exercise and motivational program, patients had significant improvements in disability, pain intensity, and working ability”.
(Spine 2005;30:995-1000).