Effectiveness of Physical Therapy Treatments of Myofascial Trigger Points in Subjects With Neck Pain

Not Applicable

• Conditions: Neck Pain; Myofascial Pain Syndrome

• Registration Number: NCT01869283
• Lead Sponsor: University of Sao Paulo

Brief Summary

Neck pain is a prevalent musculoskeletal dysfunction. Studies point that individuals with chronic pain have metabolic, vascular and electromyographic changes in trapezius muscle. Moreover, a common clinical sign in this muscle in subjects with neck pain is the presence of myofascial trigger points. These are related to the sensory, motor and autonomic changes, being defined as palpable nodules located in the taut band of skeletal muscle. In this context, the focus on treatment modalities stands out in the literature, however, other resources commonly used in clinical practice still lack scientific evidence. Therefore, the aim of this project is to evaluate the effectiveness of physiotherapy resources in the treatment of myofascial trigger points in the trapezius muscle of patients with neck pain. For such, volunteers with neck pain for more than 90 days, of both genders, aged between 18 and 59 years and bilateral myofascial trigger points in the upper trapezius will be randomized into the following groups: group 1 (kinesiotherapy, n = 20), group 2 (kinesiotherapy + static ultrasound, n = 20), group 3 (kinesiotherapy + diadynamic currents, n = 20) and group 4 (untreated control, n = 20). Volunteers will undergo ten sessions of treatment, being realized the following evaluations: surface electromyography, infrared thermography, numerical scale of pain assessment, algometry, Neck Disability Index and skin impedance. For data analysis, normality test will used to verify the data distribution and consistent statistical test for the appropriate comparisons within and between groups, and thus considered two factors in the comparisons, time and group. Will adopt a significance level of 5%.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Status Verified: 2013-05
• Study Start: 2013-05
• Study First Submitted: 2013-05-27
• Study First Submitted QC: 2013-05-30
• Last Update Submitted: 2013-05-30
• Study First Posted: 2013-06-05
• Last Update Posted: 2013-06-05
• Primary Completion: 2016-06
• Study Completion: 2017-06

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: UNKNOWN
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 80

Inclusion Criteria

• neck pain for more than 90 days
• aged 18 to 59 years
• presence of trigger points in the upper trapezius muscle

Exclusion Criteria

• history of trauma to the neck
• surgery in the head, face or neck
• herniated cervical
• degenerative diseases of the spine
• systemic diseases
• underwent physical therapy in the last three months
• analgesics, anti-inflammatories or muscle relaxants last week
• medical diagnosis of fibromyalgia
• body mass index (BMI) greater than 28 kg/m2
• signs and symptoms of depression

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Pain	3 years	Will be apply the following assessment tools: Neck Disability Index (assesses neck pain and disability), algometry (evaluates pressure pain threshold), and numerical scale of pain assessment (assesses pain intensity).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Cervical range of motion	3 years	Through a fleximeter will be evaluated movements of flexion, extension, rotation and inclination of the neck.
Skin temperature	3 years	Through of thermograph will be evaluated skin temperature on myofascial trigger points.
Muscle activity	3 years	Through surface electromyography will be evaluated the electrical activity of the upper trapezius muscle.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Sao Paulo; 🇧🇷 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil