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September 2, 2026MedicinaOpen Access

The Effects of Thoracic Flexibility Exercise on Pain, Range of Motion, Spinal Alignment, Proprioception, and Neck Disability Index in Neck Pain Patients with Forward Head Posture: A Randomized Controlled Trial

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Authors

CKChanghoon KimDPDonghwan Park

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Overview

Randomized trial demonstrates superior pain relief, mobility, and posture from thoracic flexibility exercises in forward head posture patients, highlighting benefits of targeting the upper back.

Key Points

  • To compare the effects of thoracic flexibility exercises versus cervical stabilization exercises on pain, spinal alignment, range of motion, proprioception, and disability in patients with chronic neck pain and forward head posture.
  • Randomized controlled trial involving 24 participants allocated equally to either a thoracic flexibility exercise group (n = 12) or a cervical stabilization exercise group (n = 12).
  • Interventions were performed once daily, three days per week, over a four-week period.
  • Outcomes measured before and after the intervention included pain intensity, cervical and thoracic range of motion, craniovertebral angle, cranio-rotation angle, thoracic kyphosis angle, joint proprioception, and Neck Disability Index scores.
  • The thoracic flexibility exercise group achieved statistically significant improvements across all measured outcomes following the intervention (p < 0.001).
  • The cervical stabilization exercise group showed significant improvements in pain, select cervical ranges of motion, craniovertebral and cranio-rotation angles, specific proprioceptive directions, and neck disability (p < 0.05), but not in thoracic range of motion, thoracic kyphosis, or flexion proprioception (p > 0.05).
  • Between-group comparisons using Benjamini–Hochberg false discovery rate correction revealed significantly greater improvements in the thoracic flexibility exercise group across all evaluated parameters (q < 0.05).

Cite This Study

Kim et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a97e2c5c562ede874ec70f9https://doi.org/10.3390/medicina62091666
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