Do neck and shoulder disabilities differ between isolated and associated symptom groups?: A cross-sectional study

Introduction Neck and shoulder symptoms are common musculoskeletal complaints that may occur independently or coexist, with the cervical region potentially contributing to shoulder pain. Objective To compare neck and shoulder disability and sex distribution among patients with isolated and associated symptoms in the neck and shoulder. Moreover, investigate the association between neck and shoulder disability in each symptom group. Methods This cross-sectional study evaluated 157 participants with self-reported shoulder pain (n = 35), neck pain (n = 27) and associated shoulder and neck pain (n = 95). Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) and Neck Pain Disability Index (NDI) were applied. Kruskal-Wallis, Chi-Squared and Spearman correlation tests were used. Results The associated symptoms group showed a higher prevalence of female sex (chi-squared = 8.62, p = 0.01) and longer symptom duration ( p = 0.001). Shoulder disability was higher in the shoulder pain ( p = 0.001) and associated symptoms groups ( p = 0.001). Neck disability was higher in the associated symptoms and neck pain group. A moderate positive correlation between SPADI and NDI was observed for the shoulder pain group ( p = 0.02, r = 0.38) and associated symptoms ( p = 0.001, r = 0.57), but not for the neck pain ( p = 0.15, r = 0.28). Conclusion Associated symptoms were associated with greater disability. Shoulder disability was higher when shoulder pain was present, while neck disability was most pronounced in the associated symptoms group. The moderate correlations between SPADI and NDI suggest an association between shoulder and neck impairment that does not occur in isolated neck pain group.