Neck Pain - what does it have to do with my heart?

Many people who get neck pain think that it is just that – neck pain. A little inconvenient or annoying but otherwise isolated. However, a recent study(1) has shown that chronic neck pain had other implications as well which were a little unexpected.  To understand it more fully, I will have to explain some concepts which may be unfamiliar to you, but I promise I will try to keep that to a minimum. Are you ready?
 
The first concept is Heart Rate Variability (HRV). HRV is a measure of the variation of time between each heartbeat. And now for the other two concepts. The HRV indicates whether you are more in parasympathetic state (think ‘chill mode’ which is better for rest, growth, recovery, digestion, reproduction, immune function) or sympathetic state (fight or flight – where most of your resources are shunted to various body parts like your heart, lungs, arms and legs to help you escape a potentially dangerous or stressful situation). Clearly, we want to be in parasympathetic state most of the time rather than fight or flight mode. Now, the higher the HRV, the better for your body. In fact, lower HRV is associated with cardiovascular disease and worsening anxiety or depression. Some data is emerging that for postmenopausal women with low HRV, there is a moderately higher risk of sudden cardiac death (women in general are more likely to die after a heart attack compared to men).
 
HRV is negatively affected by all sorts of inputs in our lifestyles, including:
 

• persistent increased levels of stress
• lack of quantity and quality of sleep or exercise
• poor nutrition
• isolation or solitude.

 
Science is beginning to show the extent of how neck pain can affect our bodies. The study(1) mentioned above, showed that adults aged 18-45 years with chronic neck pain had significantly lower HRV than those who were free of neck pain. That means those with chronic neck pain (defined as pain greater than three months) are more susceptible to worsening health physically and mentally. On top of that we also know that neck pain is often linked to tension headaches as well as shoulder and upper back muscle tension. All of this commonly affecting our ability to focus, to be productive and efficient amongst other things.
 
So if you have neck pain or know someone with it, you owe it to yourself to do something about it. Chiropractic is a proven modality to help with neck pain as well as tension headaches. 
 
 
 REFERENCES:
1.      Santos-de-Araujo A, Dibai-Filho A, dos Santos S, de Alcantara E, da Silva Souza C, de Paula Gomes C, de Souza J, Pinherio J and Bassi D (20019), “Correlation Between Chronic Neck Pain and Heart Rate Variability Indices at Rest: A Cross-sectional Study,” JMPT, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmpt.2018.11.010
2.      Hallman DM, Mathiassen SD, Lyskov E (2015), “Long-term monitoring of physical behaviour reveals different cardiac responses to physical activity among subjects with and without chronic neck pain,” Biomed Res. Int. 2015; 2015:1-11
3.      Kang JH, Chen HS, Chen SC, Jaw FS, (2012), “Disability in patients with chronic neck pain,” Clin J Pain, 2012;28(9):797-803
4.      A Randomized Trial of Chiropractic Manipulation and Mobilization for Patients with Neck Pain: Clinical Outcomes from the UCLA Neck-Pain Study. Eric L. Hurwitz, DC, PhD, Hal Morgenstern, PhD, Philip Harber, MD, MPH, Gerald F. Kominski, PhD, Fei Yu, PhD, and Alan H. Adams, DC, MS. Am J Public Health, v.92(10); Oct 2002
5.      Chiropractic care for patients with acute neck pain: results of a pragmatic practice-based feasibility study☆ Michael T. Hanelinea,b,⁎ and Robert Coopersteinc J Chiropr Med. 2009 Dec; 8(4): 143–155. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2009.08.003
6.      Spinal Manipulation, Medication, or Home Exercise with Advice for Acute and Subacute Neck Pain: A Randomized Trial. Bronfort, Evans, Anderson, Svebndsen, Bracha, Grimm. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2012;156(1_Part):1-10.
7.      https://www.painscience.com/articles/tension-headache.php
8.      Lower Heart Rate Variability Associated with Incident Coronary Heart Disease and Death in Post-Menopausal Women. Ahmed S Mohamed, Reema Qureshi, Matthew A Allison, JoAnn E Manson, Mary Roberts, Charles Eaton. 5 Apr 2018. Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes. 2018;11: A23