OBJECTIVES The present study was designed to evaluate the usefulness of deep dry needling in the treatment of temporomandibular myofascial pain. STUDY DESIGN We selected 36 patients with myofascial pain located in the external pterygoid muscle (30 women/6 men, mean age=27 years with SD±6.5). We studied differences in pain with a visual analog scale and range of mandibular movements before and...

There are important lessons to be learnt from the recent 'Swine Flu' pandemic. Before we call it a pandemic, we need to have appropriate trigger points that involve not only the spread of the virus but also its level of virulence. This was not done for H1N1 (swine flu). We need to ensure that we improve the techniques used in trying to decrease the spread of infection-both in the community and ...

BACKGROUND Musculoskeletal pain is a common problem among athletes. Apart from sport injuries, the myofascial pain syndrome is another important problem that affects performance of the athlete. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of therapeutic sequences of the hot pack in combination with ultrasound on the physiological responses over the latent myofascial trigger po...

Several bioprocesses exploit feeding strategies such as the minimization of acetate production in microbial cell culture. Some of these feeding strategies use values for pH or dissolved oxygen (dO2) as a trigger point. The availability of a platform able to perform this approach on a micro scale cultivation is essential for strain optimization strategy. Applikon’s micro-Matrix product is a plat...

S uperior laryngeal neuralgia is described as a rare disorder characterized by severe pain in the lateral aspect of the throat, submandibular region, and underneath the ear, precipitated by swallowing, shouting, or turning the head. A trigger point is present on the lateral aspect of the throat overlying the thyrohyoid membrane. The etiology of superior laryngeal neuralgia is unclear, although ...

Over the last few decades, advances have been made in the understanding of myofascial pain syndrome epidemiology, clinical characteristics and aetiopathogenesis, but many unknowns remain. An integrated hypothesis has provided a greater understanding of the physiopathology of trigger points, which may allow the development of new diagnostic, and above all, therapeutic methods, as well as the est...

The 'dry-needle technique', an intramuscular stimulation technique carried out by using a fine solid, 1-inch long, 30-gauge needle, was investigated in the treatment of tension-type headache (TTH) in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Fifteen patients with TTH received intramuscular needle insertions into six designated trigger points, while 15 controls received subcutaneous insertions. He...

OBJECTIVES To determine whether skin resistance measurements can objectively identify the location of myofascial trigger points (MTPs) and to differentiate between 3 states. DESIGN Static group comparison. SETTING Climate-controlled laboratory. PARTICIPANTS Forty-nine participants (age, 20.5+/-2.6 y) were assigned to 1 of 3 groups based on clinical examination result: absent (n=21), laten...

QUESTION What is the lifetime and current prevalence of thumb problems in Australian physiotherapists and what are the factors associated with thumb problems? DESIGN Survey of a random cross-section of physiotherapists. PARTICIPANTS 1562(approximately 10% of the total) registered Australian physiotherapists. OUTCOME MEASURES General questions covered demographic information, area of pract...