The range of motion of the cervical spine in children aged from 3 to 7 years - an electrogoniometric study

Abstract

The aim of the study has been to evaluate the range of motion of the cervical spine in relation to the age of the participants, and to determine the dimorphic and asymmetrical differences in the range of motion in pre-determined age categories. The study involved 300 children (150 girls and 150 boys) aged from 3 to 7 years, and tensiometric electrogoniometry was used to evaluate the range of cervical spine motion. The highest amplitude of cervical spine motion could be observed in the transverse plane and this was followed by that of the sagittal plane, with frontal plane motion being the lowest. The dynamics of the cervical spine motion changes were characterised by the presence of two distinct periods of motion increase - between years 2 and 3 and between years 6 and 7; the other periods were characterised by a decrease in cervical spine motion. The dimorphic and asymmetrical differences proved statistically insignificant.