Post-needling soreness depending on the time of dryneedling (before, during and after a manual therapyprotocol) of an active myofascial trigger point in theupper trapezius muscle in patients with mechanical neck pain.

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Mechanical neck pain.; Musculoskeletal - Other muscular and skeletal disorders

• Registration Number: ACTRN12619000874112
• Lead Sponsor: Sara Sánchez Hernández

Brief Summary

Research question: could execution time of the dry needling (DN) technique regarding a manual therapy (MT) protocol decrease post-needling soreness in patients with mechanical neck pain and active myofascial trigger point (MTrP) in the upper trapezius muscle? Background information: neck pain is a common pathology and one of the techniques used by the physical-therapist for its treatment is the active MTrP DN of neck muscles. A mild adverse effect of this treatment is the post-needling soreness. Participant characteristics: volunteers patients with mechanical neck pain (of at least 3 months evolution and intensity of 3 cm in the visual analogue scale) and active MTrP in the upper trapezius muscle will be recruited. Key results: the application of DN during MT protocol showed statistically significant differences between groups. Limitations: First, the results were limited by the way of application of the technique. Also age, gender and geographical or cultural differences might be associated with differences in needling tolerance and post-needling soreness intensity. Second, the follow-up was only of one week. Third, we only used the MT and DN techniques to treat these patients, which does not resemble the real clinical practice where a multimodal approach is usually performed. Fourth, we did not collect information about changes in other possible variables related to neck pain such as depression, anxiety, mood or sleep disorders.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Results First Posted: 1900-01-01
• Study Start: 2019-06-19
• Study Completion: 2020-02-25
• Last Update Posted: 21 September 2020

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 108

Inclusion Criteria

Volunteer patients (men and women) with mechanical neck pain (of at
least 3 months evolution and intensity of 3 centimeters in the visual analogue scale) and active myofascial trigger point in the upper trapezius muscle will be recruited.

Exclusion Criteria

Fear of needles, coagulation disorders, previous cervical surgery, current or previous whiplash diagnosis, cervical radiculopathy or myelopathy, diagnosis of fibromyalgia, Thyroid disorders, dizziness and vertigo, some contraindication of dry needling (the use of anticoagulants,
psychiatric disorders, etc.).

Study & Design

• Study Type: Interventional
• Study Design: Not specified