Cervical dystonia (CD) is a neurological movement disorder causing the neck to move involuntarily away from the neutral position. CD is a network disorder, involving multiple brain areas and, therefore, may impair movement in parts of the body other than the neck. This study used clinical assessments to investigate walking, balance and upper limb function (UL) in people with CD; the reliability of scoring these assessments and examined for relationship between CD severity, usual exercise and clinical assessments. We conducted a prospective observational cohort study of participants with isolated, focal, idiopathic CD. Participants were assessed by experienced physiotherapists and completed three questionnaires and eight clinical assessments of fear of falling, balance confidence, walking, balance, UL function and usual exercise. Results were compared to published data from healthy adults and other neurological populations. Twenty-two people with mild to moderate CD participated. Fear of falling, gross UL function and usual exercise were worse in people with CD compared with healthy adults, while walking, balance and distal UL function were similar to healthy populations. All assessments were reliably performed by physiotherapists, and we found no correlations between the severity of dystonia or usual exercise and performance on the physical assessments. Routine performance of clinical assessment of walking and balance are likely not required in people with mild to moderate CD; however, fear of falling and gross upper limb function should be assessed to determine any problems which may be amenable to therapy.

颈肌张力障碍 (CD) 是一种神经运动障碍，导致颈部不由自主地远离中立位。CD 是一种网络障碍，涉及多个大脑区域，因此可能会损害颈部以外身体部位的运动。本研究使用临床评估来调查 CD 患者的步行、平衡和上肢功能 (UL)；对这些评估进行评分的可靠性，并检查 CD 严重程度、日常锻炼和临床评估之间的关系。我们对患有孤立性、局灶性、特发性 CD 的参与者进行了一项前瞻性观察队列研究。参与者由经验丰富的物理治疗师进行评估，并完成了三份问卷和八项对跌倒恐惧、平衡信心、步行、平衡、UL 功能和日常锻炼的临床评估。结果与来自健康成人和其他神经系统人群的已发表数据进行了比较。22 名轻度至中度 CD 患者参加。与健康成人相比，CD 患者对跌倒的恐惧、总 UL 功能和日常运动更糟，而步行、平衡和远端 UL 功能与健康人群相似。所有评估均由物理治疗师可靠地进行，我们发现肌张力障碍或日常运动的严重程度与身体评估的表现之间没有相关性。轻度至中度 CD 患者可能不需要对步行和平衡进行常规临床评估；然而，应评估对跌倒的恐惧和上肢的粗略功能，以确定可能适合治疗的任何问题。