AUTHOR=Horike Kaori , Ukezono Masatoshi 

TITLE=Efficacy of chronic neck pain self-treatment using press needles: a randomized controlled clinical trial

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pain Research

VOLUME=5

YEAR=2024

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pain-research/articles/10.3389/fpain.2024.1301665

DOI=10.3389/fpain.2024.1301665

ISSN=2673-561X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>Chronic neck pain is common among Japanese individuals, but few receive treatment. This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy of acupuncture using press needles in the self-treatment of chronic neck pain and preliminarily identify the characteristics of patients likely to benefit from this treatment.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>Fifty participants with chronic neck pain were allocated to receive either press needle or placebo treatment for 3 weeks. The visual analogue scale (VAS) and motion-related VAS (M-VAS) scores for neck pain, Neck Disability Index score, and pressure pain threshold were measured at baseline, after the first session, at the end of the last session, and 1 week after the last session. Changes in the outcomes were analyzed using analysis of variance, and the relationships between the variables were evaluated using structural equation modeling.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Intervention results as assessed by VAS score revealed no significant differences in the ANOVA. A between-groups comparison of M-VAS scores at the end of the last session and baseline showed a significant difference (press needle: −21.64 ± 4.47, placebo: −8.09 ± 3.81, <italic>p</italic> = 0.025, <italic>d</italic> = −0.65). Structural equation modeling revealed a significant pain-reducing effect of press needle treatment (<italic>β</italic> = −0.228, <italic>p</italic> = 0.049). Severity directly affected efficacy (<italic>β</italic> = −0.881, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). Pain duration, baseline VAS and Neck Disability Index scores were variables explaining severity, while age and occupational computer use were factors affecting severity.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>Self-treatment with press needles for chronic neck pain did not significantly reduce the VAS score compared to placebo but reduced the motion-related pain as assessed by M-VAS score. A direct association was observed between pain severity and the effectiveness of press needles, and the impact of age and computer were indirectly linked by pain severity.</p></sec><sec><title>Clinical Trial Registration</title><p>Identifier UMIN-CTR, UMIN000044078.</p></sec>