The comparison between dry needling and electro-acupuncture of the upper trapezius on pain, ultrasonography changes, and functional disability of the upper limb in the subjects with myofascial pain syndrome

Abstract

Introduction: Myofascial pain syndrome is one of the most common causes of pain today, the important feature of which is the presence of trigger points. The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of dry needling (DN) and electroacupuncture (EA) of the upper trapezius muscle on ultrasonic changes, pain intensity, and upper limb functional disability in patients with myofascial pain syndrome. Materials and Methods: 30 people with active trigger points in the upper trapezius muscle were included in the study and divided into two experimental groups 1 (treatment with dry needling) and experimental group 2 (treatment with electroacupuncture). The experimental groups were treated for 4 sessions (2 sessions per week) for 2 weeks, and the three variables of pain intensity, functional disability index, and upper trapezius muscle thickness before treatment (pre-test), after treatment (post-test 1), and one month after It was evaluated from the treatment (post-test 2). Results: The results showed that statistically significant difference between pain intensity, functional disability index, and upper trapezius muscle thickness in the post-test stages 1 and 2 compared to the pre-test stage (P0.05), while the pain intensity in the long-term effect (post-test 2 ratio) pre-test) there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups (P