ArticleEuropean journal of applied physiology2017
Changes in stiffness of the dorsal scapular muscles before and after computer work: a comparison between individuals with and without neck and shoulder complaints.
Article in European journal of applied physiology, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 61 citations in OpenAlex.
- Is chronic neck pain related to scapular dyskinesia? A systematic review.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of scapular treatment on chronic neck pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Pooled it
- Effects of alternating heat and cold stimulation at different cooling rates using a wearable thermo device on shoulder muscle stiffness: a cross-over study.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2022Trial
- Effects of alternating heat and cold stimulation using a wearable thermo-device on subjective and objective shoulder stiffness.Journal of physiological anthropology · 2022Trial
- Four weeks of exercise regimen for sedentary workers with rounded shoulder posture: a randomized controlled study.Sao Paulo medical journal = Revista paulista de medicina · 2022Trial
- Relationship between the degree of forward head posture and the shear elastic modulus of the upper trapezius in young men, and the difference in these variables between those with and without neck/shoulder pain and/or stiffness.Journal of physical therapy science · 2025Article
- The effect of nordic walking with poles with an integrated resistance shock absorber on muscle stiffness and elasticity indicators in postmenopausal women.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Article
- Ultrasound elastography of back muscle biomechanical properties: a systematic review and meta-analysis of current methods.Insights into imaging · 2024Review
- Effect of Knee Angle, Contractile Activity, and Intensity of Force Production on Vastus Lateralis Stiffness: A Supersonic Shear Wave Elastography Pilot Study.Sports (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Close relationships between neck and upper-back stiffness and transverse cervical artery flow velocity.European journal of applied physiology · 2024Article
- Dry needling in the management of chronic tension-type headache associated with levator scapulae syndrome: A case report.Clinical case reports · 2024Article
- Local alternating heat and cold stimulation affects hemodynamics and oxygenation in fatigued muscle tissue and autonomic nervous activity: a single-arm interventional study.Journal of physiological anthropology · 2024Article
- Evaluation of skeletal muscle elasticity using color Doppler shear wave imaging.Journal of ultrasound · 2024Article
- Cluster Analysis of Subjective Shoulder Stiffness and Muscle Hardness: Associations with Central Sensitization-Related Symptoms.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2023Article
- Association of activities of daily living and cognitive function with thickness of the upper extremity muscles in children and adults with cerebral palsy.Journal of medical ultrasonics (2001) · 2023Article
- Scapulohumeral kinematics and neuromuscular control during scaption are associated with passive stiffness and strength of periscapular muscles in competitive adolescent swimmers.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Which muscles exhibit increased stiffness in people with chronic neck pain? A systematic review with meta-analysis.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2023Review
- Viscoelasticity in trapezius myofascial pain syndrome: quantitative assessment using Real-Time Shear-Wave Elastography.Annals of medicine · 2023Article
- Specification of Neck Muscle Dysfunction through Digital Image Analysis Using Machine Learning.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Clinical features of neck and shoulder pain (Katakori) in Japanese hospital workers.Fukushima journal of medical science · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeThe aim of this study was to compare the stiffness of the dorsal scapular muscles before and after computer work between individuals with and without neck and shoulder complaints.
methodsThirty subjects were divided into patient (n = 18) and control (n = 12) groups. The stiffness of the upper trapezius, levator scapulae, and rhomboid major was measured using ultrasound elastography before and after a 30-min typing task. The strain ratio of the muscle to an acoustic coupler was calculated (a lower strain ratio value indicates greater muscle stiffness).
resultsAt baseline, the strain ratio of the upper trapezius in the patient group (3.762 ± 1.679) (mean ± SD) was significantly lower than that of the control group (7.763 ± 5.921) (p = 0.041). No significant change in the strain ratio of the upper trapezius after the typing task was observed in the patient group (4.158 ± 3.465) (p = 0.549). A significant decrease in the strain ratio of the levator scapulae after the typing task was observed in the patient group (before: 9.006 ± 7.079, after: 5.718 ± 2.847) (p = 0.022), whereas there was no significant change in the control group (p = 0.436).
conclusionsThe increase in stiffness of the upper trapezius is an objective finding and may be a persistently altered condition in individuals with neck and shoulder complaints. The patterns of change in stiffness of the levator scapulae are different between individuals with and without neck and shoulder complaints.
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Registered trials
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