Journal international de médecine physique et de réadaptation
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Comparison of Muscle Strength and Range of Motion of the Neck between Opium Smokers and Non-Drug Users in the Most Prevalent Opium Smoking Persian Gulf Country: A Cross-Sectional Study from Iran

Omid Massah1, Amir Masoud Arab2*, Ali Farhoudian3, Mehdi Noroozi1,4,5, Fahimeh Hashemirad2

Background: Many studies have shown that non-ergonomic positioning of the spine is one of the main causes of postural deformity and opium smoking requires sitting in non-ergonomic positions that are repeated several hours a day and over many years which increases the possibility of posture disorders. Since opium smoking is a health concern in Iran, comparing muscle strength and Range of Motion (ROM) of the neck between opium smokers and non-drug users was the aim of this study.

Methods: In this comparative and cross-sectional study eighty opium smokers were compared with 74 non-drug users in terms of muscle strength and range of motion of the neck. Data were analyzed by Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Pearson correlation coefficient and Independent T tests through SPSS software version 23.

Findings: There were significant differences between the two groups in most variables. Range of motion of forward flexion (P=0.011), extension (P˂0.001), right lateral flexion (P=0.009) and left lateral flexion (P=0.001) were significantly different between two groups. Also, muscle strength of opium smokers was significantly lower than non-drug users in all four directions (P˂0.001).

Conclusion: It seems that opium smokers are more prone to decrease muscle strength and range of motion of the neck than non-drug users and this could be due to the long hours of the non-ergonomic position while smoking opium after years.