Effects of dry needling of latent trigger points on viscoelastic and muscular contractile properties: preliminary results of a randomized within-participant clinical trial
Author
Pérez Bellmunt, Albert
Casasayas Cos, Oriol
Rodríguez Jiménez, Jorge
Ortiz-Miguel, Sara
Meca Rivera, Toni
Fernández de las Peñas, César
Publication date
2021ISSN
2077-0383
Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate changes in neuromuscular function and pain perception in latent trigger points (TrPs) in the gastrocnemius muscle after a single session of dry needling. A randomized within-participant clinical trial was conducted. Fifty volunteers with latent TrPs in the gastrocnemius muscles were explored. Each extremity was randomly assigned to a control or experimental (dry needling) group. Viscoelastic parameters and contractile properties were analyzed by tensiomyography. Ankle dorsiflexion range of motion was assessed with the lunge test. Pressure pain thresholds (PPT) and pain perceived were also analyzed. The results observed that three viscoelastic proprieties (myotonometry) showed significant differences in favor of the experimental extremity in the lateral gastrocnemius: stiffness (p = 0.02), relaxation (p = 0.045), and creep (p = 0.03), but not in the medial gastrocnemius. No changes in tensiomyography outcomes were found. The control extremity showed a higher increase in PPTs (i.e., decrease in pressure pain sensitivity) than the experimental extremity (p = 0.03). No significant effects for range of motion or strength were observed. In general, gender did not influence the effects of dry needling over latent TrPs in the gastrocnemius muscle. In conclusion, a single session of dry needling was able to change some parameters of neuromuscular function, such as muscle tone, relaxation, pressure pain sensitivity, and creep in the lateral (but not medial) gastrocnemius but did not improve strength or range of motion.
Document Type
Article
Document version
Published version
Language
English
Subject (CDU)
61 - Medical sciences
Keywords
Punció seca
Dolor miofascial
Punts desencadenants
Músculs bessons
Punción seca
Dolor miofascial
Puntos desencadenantes
Músculos gemelos
Dry needling
Myofascial pain
Trigger points
Gastrocnemius
Pages
15
Publisher
MDPI
Collection
10;17
Is part of
Journal of Clinical Medicine
Citation
Pérez Bellmunt, Albert; Casasayas Cos, Oriol; López de Celis, Carlos [et al.]. Effects of dry needling of latent trigger points on viscoelastic and muscular contractile properties: preliminary results of a randomized within-participant clinical trial. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2021, 10(17), 3848. Disponible en: <https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/10/17/3848>. Fecha de acceso: 1 sep. 2021. DOI: 10.3390/jcm10173848
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- Ciències de la Salut [725]
Rights
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/