Cervical Lordosis
Definition
The natural anterior convexity of the cervical spine. Normal cervical lordosis is approximately 20-40 degrees. Loss of cervical lordosis (straightening or reversal of the curve) is commonly associated with forward head posture, excessive screen time, and thoracic kyphosis compensation.
Clinical Significance
Loss of cervical lordosis increases compressive loading on the anterior cervical discs, stretches the posterior cervical ligaments, and forces the suboccipital muscles into chronic contraction to maintain horizontal gaze. It is associated with tension headaches, neck pain, cervicogenic dizziness, and upper trap hypertonicity. The root cause is frequently thoracic kyphosis forcing the cervical spine to hyperextend.
How AKMI Assesses This
AKMI measures cervical forward head distance, cervical extension ROM, deep neck flexor endurance, and upper cervical position. The assessment correlates cervical findings with thoracic kyphosis to identify the upstream driver.
Get your spine assessed
A biomechanical assessment measures cervical lordosis and its relationship to the rest of your structural chain. 18 tests, objective data, personalized programming.