EMG Feedback Alone and in Combination with Posture Feedback: A Comparative Treatment Study in a Case of Torticollis

Abstract

A single-case design was used to explore the effects of EMG feedback versus EMG-plus-posture feedback in the treatment of overt symptoms of torticollis in an elderly female patient. It was found that EMG levels of the sternomastoid muscle were inversely related to EMG of the trapezius muscle, rather than systematically related to components of treatment. Resting posture showed a pattern of improvement, especially with regard to shoulder asymmetry and forward flexion. Also, the patient's voluntary control over posture showed marked improvement between pre- and postphases of treatment; this was maintained at follow-up 8 weeks after treatment. Implications are raised for further research, in particular, the importance of assessing multiple aspects of posture and recording EMG from more than one site simultaneously.