1. Title: Manual therapy versus therapeutic exercise in non-specific chronic neck pain: a randomized controlled trial (Bernal-Utrera et al., 2020)

Nonspecific chronic neck pain is a fairly common disorder that causes a great impact, and it is greatly influenced by psychosocial factors. Among a number of treatment modalities described for its management, the most common approach is based on manual therapy and specific therapeutic exercise, which have shown a moderate effect on subjects with chronic non-specific neck pain. 

These study aims to break down and compare the effects of two experimental treatments based on manual therapy and therapeutic exercise.

The sample was randomized divided into three groups: manual therapy, therapeutic exercise, and placebo. The research studied (a) pain, based on the visual analog scale and the pressure pain threshold, and (b) cervical disability, through the Neck Disability Index (NDI)

Manual therapy achieves a faster reduction in pain perception than therapeutic exercise. Therapeutic exercise reduces disability faster than manual therapy.

2. Title: Comparison of high-intensity laser therapy and combination of ultrasound treatment and transcutaneous nerve stimulation on cervical pain associated with cervical disc herniation: A randomized trial. (Yilmaz et al., 2020)

The aim of the study was to compare the effect of high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) and a combination of transcutaneous nerve stimulation (TENS) and ultrasound (US) treatment on pain, range of motion (ROM) and functional activity on cervical pain associated with cervical disc herniation)CDH).

The outcomes were cervical segment ROM, pain level measured by visual analogue scale (VAS), and functional activity measured by neck pain and disability scale (NPADS) before and after the therapy.

Both groups (HILT group and TENS/US)  demonstrated analgesic efficacy and improved the function in patients affected by CDH after 4 weeks of therapy (total 20 treatment sessions in 5 days a week).

Both the HILT plus exercise program and the TENS / US plus exercise program were found to be effective in improving cervical range of motion and quality of life by reducing pain. These two treatment programs have similar effects in the treatment of cervical pain associated with CDH and can be used as an alternative to each other in clinical applications.

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