Exercise Training With Physically Active Lifestyle to Reduce Headache and Quality of Life

Summary

The aim of this intervention study is to examine whether tailored exercise therapy training is effective and cost-effective to decrease headache frequency and intensity, reduce medication used for chronic headache and patients´ absence from work, improve their neck muscle force, cervical spine mobility, functional ability and quality of life, and increase general physical activity in chronic headache women at regular work during a 6-month intervention.

The intervention itself with pilot-tested upper-neck specific exercise regimen aims that patients would independently commit to train and exercise to reduce their headache, and thus increase their quality of life. In addition, reduced pain and frequency of headache may increase the objectively measured daily physical activity of chronic headache patients.

Conditions

• Headache
• Physical Activity
• Quality of Life

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Training group

The 60-minute training sessions include a few mobilization techniques for upper neck. In detail, three different exercises concentrated on postural and motor control will be taught during the first two training sessions. Progressively, two additional exercise movements aiming at postural and motor control will be taught in the next session. After eight weeks, two muscle strength exercises utilising therapeutic rubber band will be included into the program. The aim of the rubber band exercises is eventually to achieve the load of 80% of maximal voluntary contraction. The participants in the training group are also instructed to increase their amount of physical activity progressively according to the current physical activity recommendations.

BEHAVIORAL

Control

The control group will receive six sessions of Transcutaneous Nervous Stimulation treatment (TNS) as a placebo treatment (0) and the participants in control group are recommended and encouraged to maintain their previous normal level of physical activity and exercise habits throughout the study without any supervision or home training programs.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Jyväskylä Central Hospital

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Jyvaskyla

  collaborator OTHER

• UKK Institute

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Marjo B Rinne, PhD · UKK Institute

• Riku P Nikander, PhD · University of Jyvaskyla

• Arja H Häkkinen, PhD · University of Jyvaskyla

• Jari J Ylinen, MD, DO, PhD · Jyväskylä Central Hospital

• Katriina Kukkonen-Harjula, MD · Rehabilitation, South Karelia Social and Health Care District (Eksote)

• Kari Tokola, MSci · UKK Institute

• Sanna Garam, MSci · Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

60 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2012-09-17

Primary Completion

2015-07-03

Completion

2015-07-03

Countries

• Finland

Study Locations