Cervical Traction for Pain Relief of the Neck How a neck stretcher and other cervical supports can help your neck pain and stiff neck

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Are you not able to get comfortable at night because of neck pain or stiffness? At Arc4life we specialize in neck pain relief products including cervical traction systems, traction products and neck cushions.

What is Traction? Traction involves the application of a continuous force that elongates or stretches spine. This pulling force is used for treatment of musculoskeletal conditions. It may be applied to the arms, legs, neck, back or pelvis for treatment of fractures, dislocations, muscle spasms and other muscular disorders. Traction uses weights, counterweights and pulleys to provide a force that gradually stretches the spine to a normal position. Before doing traction, it is important to consult a doctor because certain factors such as age, weight and medical history make a difference.

What Studies have been done using traction?- Many scientific studies have shown the benefit of using traction for natural pain relief.

• In 2006 Dr. Graham and other researchers carried out randomized controlled trials to assess whether mechanical traction, either alone or in combination with other treatments, improves pain, function/disability, patient satisfaction and global perceived effect in adults with mechanical neck disorders.10 trials were included in this review. Of the ten, it was noted that one study was of high quality. The review revealed low-quality trials for mechanical neck disorders, and demonstrated that it is beneficial to have intermittent traction specifically for pain reductions. Regarding continuous traction, the review indicated no significant difference for defined outcomes. (Graham, et al., 2006)
• In 1999, Dr. Swezey and other researcheres studied 58 outpatients for the purpose of determining if home cervical traction was beneficial. It was noted that a brief, over-the-door home cervical traction modality provided symptomatic relief in 85% of the patients with mild to moderately severe neck pain.
• In 2002 Dr.Constantoyannis and other researchers conducted a case series of four patients with neck pain who were treated with intermittent over-the-door cervical traction. It was noted that there was complete symptom resolution for each patient within three weeks

Home Cervical Traction Units Being able to treat you neck pain at home can make the healing process faster. Home Cervical Traction is a non invasive way that can give you long term pain relief. Home traction stretch sthe soft tissues of the neck and to separate the spinal joint structures in order to relieve neck pain. Constant traction results in tiring of the muscles, allowing the strain to rest on the joints. Traction results in a widening of the joint spaces, promoting pain relief because pressure is taken of the cervical nerves. There are few different types of traction that are available including a free weight and pulley system or a mechanical motorized device, often involving a head or chin sling to allow pull in a cephalad upward direction. Mechanical motorized devices are easily applied but require patient attendance and, therefore, are most often used in an outpatient clinic setting. These include the cervical posture pump 1000 and the Pronex pneumatic traction unit. You can acheive 20-50 pounds of pressure (PSI). Cervical traction may be used in a home setting as an alternative to or in addition to outpatient rehabilitation.

Doing Traction at Home Doing traction directly in your own home can help a patient to heal comfortably and continually. Proper instructions must always be followed when doing traction at home because this is a medical device. It should be applied in the position of maximal pain relief and should not result in discomfort or more pain. There are different home traction devices availabe today including traditional over-the-door devices (applied in a sitting position) and more advanced technologies (applied in a lying down position), such as the Cervical Posture Pump 1000 and Pronex® Pneumatic Traction Unit. With the traditional over-the-door traction device, one can get up to 20 pounds of pressure or less of traction. One must be careful with overhead traction is that it can put a lot of pressure on the TMJ (temporomandibular joint) and cause irritation and pain. It is important to do the traction for a specified amount of time and fit the head gear properly. The head halter fits under the chin. As force is transmitted through the chin strap to the teeth, the TMJ becomes a weight-bearing structure, which may potentially cause the joint to deteriorate.

Devices that are used in the home can allow greater traction force such as the Pronex Pneumatic cervical traction device. The Pronex is a patient-controlled, pneumatic traction device that is used in a supine (lying on your back) position. The neck traction device cradles a reclining patient’s head and neck between two soft foam cushions. The Pronex Cervical Traction Unit maintains the normal cervical lordosis, resulting in uniform traction posteriorly and anteriorly across the vertebral disc, in comparison to other devices, which occlude the anterior disc space for temporary relief posteriorly. This neck stretcher can be used to deliver a traction force that avoids TMJ force and allows patients control of their own comfort level. Furthermore, with this traction unit, you can easily induce a small amount of flexion (bringing your chin to the chest) for a greater pain relief. Finally, the Pronex comes in three different sizes allowing the patient to have the best fit possible. To learn more about the Pronex traction unit on Arc 4 Life.

Treatment Protocol For Traction Treatment plans will vary for home traction depending on your particular neck pain condition. For an acute pain episode treatment is usually short-term (less than eight weeks in duration) with treatments 2–3 times per week. Once this eight week time line has passed patients do one of two things:

1. Some use the cervical traction unit at home on an as needed basis. When they have neck pain, they do home traction.
2. Some patients use cervical traction reguarly 1-2 times per week just like they would do their regular exercise.

This is beneficial when one does not have the proper cervical curvature or a loss of cervical lordosis. This is often determined by a lateral cervical x-ray which shows the neck from the side. No curve or a "military neck" benefits from traction in thelong term. With traction patients will see pain relief, increase in cervical range of motion and return to activities of daily living. Typically, traction is used as part of an ongoing comprehensive rehabilitation treatment program to improve activities of daily living, range of motion and mobility, and overall function. It is important to have other therapy including ice, electrical muscle stimulation, and chiropractic for optimal pain relief. Arc 4 Life has written a comprehensive article on how to end neck pain by doing a cervical traction program at home.

Cervical Supports There are many cervical support cushions that one can use during the day for stretching of the neck and gentle traction. At Arc4life.com we offer the Soothe-A-Ciser neck support cushion. Patients can also use supportive products at night such as the cervical traction neck pillow - which provides gentle traction to the cervical spine while sleeping. Our neck pillows support your head and neck in their most natural, neutral position. A proper sleeping posture can give you relief from and help prevent nerve pressure and airway blockage (usually a major cause of snoring), and assist in recovery from whiplash (usually from a motor vehicle accident), and other neck injuries. These neck pillows are so comfortable, you may never sleep on a regular neck pillow again.