Effect of the cervical and thoracic “Daoyin” training on college students with upper crossed syndrome: A randomized controlled trial

Background: With the growing ubiquity of electronic devices, the incidence of upper crossed syndrome (UCS) is increasing every year and tends to affect younger populations. The study designed to assess how cervical and thoracic "Daoyin" training affected college students with UCS's pain, posture, lung function, cervical range of motion, and emotional state. Methods: We conducted a parallel-group randomized control study, assigning 40 college students to intervention group (IG) and control group (CG) at Fujian Medical University, Fujian, China. Instructed cervical and thoracic "Daoyin" training was given to students in the IG for eight weeks, five days a week for 30 minutes, whereas students in the CG continued with their usual activities. Primary outcomes, namely, forward head and shoulder angles, pain, and cervical spine function, and secondary outcomes, namely, pulmonary function, cervical range of motion, and emotional state, were measured by photogrammetry, visual analog scale, Neck Disability Index, pulmonary function and cervical range of motion test, and Self-rating Anxiety Scale, respectively, at baseline and at a follow-up of eight weeks. We analyzed the effect of cervical and thoracic "Daoyin" training on college students with UCS using a mixed linear model. Results: Analyses using linear mixed models revealed that the IG had a obvious improvement in the forward head angle, forward shoulder angle, and emotional state compared with the CG from baseline to eight weeks post-intervention (F = 22.078, P < 0.001; F = 13.987, P < 0.001; F = 6.842, P = 0.011). In addition, as compared with the CG, after intervention the IG considerably improved pain, cervical spine function, pulmonary function (forced vital capacity [FVC], forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), FEV1/FVC, maximal voluntary ventilation, cervical range of motion in forward flexion, and emotional state, with medium and large effect sizes. No side-effects were observed in this study. Conclusion: Based on our results, we conclude that cervical and thoracic “Daoyin” training can improve the pain, posture, cervical spine function, lung function, cervical range of motion, and emotional state of college students with UCS. Trial registration: ChiCTR2300067990 (02/02/2023), Retrospectively registered, www.chictr.org.cn