Dry needling and acute neck pain
Dry needling intervention improves neck pain, hypersensitivity to touch, and neck range of motion in people experiencing mechanical neck pain.
Neck pain is often associated with the presence of trigger points, or muscle “knots” (hypersensitive, palpable nodules in the muscle) and loss of flexibility. Physical therapy is a safe and effective first-line intervention for mechanical neck pain. In addition to traditional physical therapy, dry needling can be used to treat mechanical neck pain.
This article included 17 participants experiencing neck pain and were separated into two groups. Group one received trigger point dry needling and group two was a “watch and wait”, or non-intervention group. Pain intensity, neck flexility and sensitivity to touch were recorded before, 10 minutes after and 1 week after treatment.
The article found that trigger point dry needling demonstrated a significant improvement in neck pain, sensitivity to touch and neck range of motion immediately after treatment and 1 week later. The findings suggest that dry needling can be an effective first-line treatment for people experiencing neck pain. These changes can be due to several factors. These include normalizing muscle tone, an interruption of pain signaling from nerves, as well as how the brain perceives pain signals.
Conclusion: Dry needling is a safe and effective treatment for people experiencing neck pain and loss of neck range of motion that result in dysfunction.