The relative effectiveness of spray and stretch compared to ice and stretch in the treatment of myofascial trigger points

Abstract

Pain arising from myofascial trigger points is common and is often so disabling that the need for fast effective treatment is urgent. Of the many documented treatments for trigger points, there is little evidence to support one treatment over another. It is thus the purpose of this study to determine the relative effectiveness of stretch and ice to stretch and spray in the treatment of myofascial trigger points found in the upper trapezius muscle. This comparative clinical study involved the participation of thirty patients presenting with myofascial trigger points of the upper trapezius muscle. By means of consecutive sampling, patients complaining of neck pain, and/or headaches, and/or shoulder pain or a combination thereof, and who were between the ages of sixteen and sixty-five, underwent a screening processes to determine if they had active myofascial trigger points in the upper trapezius. Those that were eligible for the study were randomly assigned to either the stretch and ice group or the stretch and spray group. The subjective primary data consisted of three pain questionnaires, namely the Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire, CMCC Neck Disability Index, and Numerical Rating Scale-101. The objective data was supplied by readings taken from an algometer. The patients underwent three consultations in the first week, two consultations in the second week and a final consultation one-month after the fifth treatment. All the primary data was collected at four occasions. These were at the first, third, fifth and one month follow-up consultations. Intra-group analysis using the Wilcoxon Sign-Rank Test determined if each group improved significantly with respect to the data collected. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to determine which group was statistically better than the other. The results, including the standard deviation, standard error, mean and power