Abstract
Background. Dry needling at distant myofascial trigger points is an effective pain management in patients with myofascial pain. However, the biochemical effects of remote dry needling are not well understood. This study evaluates the remote effects of dry needling with different dosages on the expressions of substance P (SP) in the proximal muscle, spinal dorsal horns of rabbits. Methods. Male New Zealand rabbits (2.5–3.0 kg) received dry needling at myofascial trigger spots of a gastrocnemius (distant muscle) in one (1D) or five sessions (5D). Bilateral biceps femoris (proximal muscles) and superficial laminaes of L5-S2, T2-T5, and C2-C5 were sampled immediately and 5 days after dry needling to determine the levels of SP using immunohistochemistry and western blot. Results. Immediately after dry needling for 1D and 5D, the expressions of SP were significantly decreased in ipsilateral biceps femoris and bilateral spinal superficial laminaes (P < .05). Five days after dry needling, these reduced immunoactivities of SP were found only in animals receiving 5D dry needling (P < .05). Conclusions. This remote effect of dry needling involves the reduction of SP levels in proximal muscle and spinal superficial laminaes, which may be closely associated with the control of myofascial pain.
Highlights
Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs), a source of musculoskeletal pain, has been defined as a hyperirritable spot in a taut band of skeletal muscle fibers and may play a key role in the pathophysiology of myofascial pain syndrome [1].Dry needling targeting directly the primary MTrP, if performed appropriately, is one of the effective therapies for inactivating MTrPs and alleviating pain [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]
In an electrophysiological study investigating the neural mechanism of remote effects of dry needling, it has found that these effects are mediated via intact afferent neural pathways from the stimulated site to the spinal cord segments of the proximally responded affected muscle [17] and may involve the possible effects from extrasegments of the spinal cord, such as descending pain inhibitory systems [17]
The subgroups are (1) 1D group with animals submitted to one dosage of dry needling, (2) s1D group with animals submitted to one dosage of shamoperated dry needling, (3) 5D group with animals submitted to one dosage of dry needling for five consecutive days, and (4) s5D group with animals submitted to one dosage of sham-operated dry needling for five consecutive days
Summary
Myofascial trigger points (MTrPs), a source of musculoskeletal pain, has been defined as a hyperirritable (hypersensitive) spot in a taut band of skeletal muscle fibers and may play a key role in the pathophysiology of myofascial pain syndrome [1].Dry needling targeting directly the primary MTrP, if performed appropriately, is one of the effective therapies for inactivating MTrPs and alleviating pain [2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10]. Dry needling at distant myofascial trigger points is an effective pain management in patients with myofascial pain. This study evaluates the remote effects of dry needling with different dosages on the expressions of substance P (SP) in the proximal muscle, spinal dorsal horns of rabbits. Bilateral biceps femoris (proximal muscles) and superficial laminaes of L5-S2, T2-T5, and C2-C5 were sampled immediately and 5 days after dry needling to determine the levels of SP using immunohistochemistry and western blot. After dry needling for 1D and 5D, the expressions of SP were significantly decreased in ipsilateral biceps femoris and bilateral spinal superficial laminaes (P < .05). This remote effect of dry needling involves the reduction of SP levels in proximal muscle and spinal superficial laminaes, which may be closely associated with the control of myofascial pain
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
