Abstract
ABSTRACTBackgroundDry needling (DN) and percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) are widely used techniques in the treatment of myofascial pain.ObjectiveTo investigate the immediate and short-term effects of the combination of DN and PENS compared to DN alone on the upper trapezius muscle.MethodThis is a 72-hour follow-up single-blinded randomized controlled trial. Sixty-two volunteer patients with chronic myofascial neck pain with active Myofascial Trigger Points (MTrPs) in the upper trapezius muscle were recruited. Randomization was performed, and 31 patients received DN treatment (DN group) and 31 received DN and PENS (DN+PENS group). The primary outcomes were neck disability index (NDI) and visual analog scale for pain for both post-needling soreness (PNS) and neck pain intensity (NPI). Pressure pain threshold (PPT) and cervical range of motion (CROM) were the secondary outcomes. ResultsWe detected between-group differences in NPI and PNS in favor of the DN+PENS group immediately after treatment. No between-group differences in NDI were observed.ConclusionPENS application after dry needling treatment is more effective than dry needling alone for decreasing soreness in the short term and improving neck pain intensity immediately in patients with myofascial chronic neck pain.
Highlights
Myofascial pain is commonly defined as a frequent source of pain in clinical practice
A total of 30 subjects were analyzed in the Dry needling (DN) Group and 29 subjects were analyzed in the DN+percutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (PENS) Group (Figure 1)
visual analog scale (VAS) score for post-needling soreness For the between-group comparisons using the Kruskal‐Wallis test, differences were found at all follow‐up periods (P
Summary
Myofascial pain is commonly defined as a frequent source of pain in clinical practice. Myofascial pain is a prevalent pathology in developed countries, with epidemiological studies showing that up to 85% of the general population will experience at least one episode of myofascial pain during their lifetime[1]. Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) are often present in this pain-related pathology and are defined as hypersensitive spots located in the palpable taut bands of skeletal muscle[2]. MTrPs can be classified as active or latent. Active MTrPs produce local or referred spontaneous pain that can be elicited by stimulation. Latent MTrPs produce local or referred pain only when stimulated, but not spontaneously[2,6]
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