Comparison Between the Effectiveness of Muscle Energy Technique and Ischemic Compression On Myofascial Trigger Points in Patients with Chronic Shoulder Pain

Muscle Energy Technique and Ischemic Compression on Myofascial Trigger Points

Authors

  • Kiran Bashir Islamabad College of physiotherapy, Margalla Institute of Health Sciences, Islamabad, Pakistan
  • Muhammad Salman Bashir Riphah College of Rehabilitation and Allied Health Sciences, Riphah International University, Islamabad campus, Pakistan
  • Muhammad Nazim Farooq Islamabad College of physiotherapy, Margalla Institute of Health Sciences, Islamabad, Pakistan
  • Fatima Amjad Islamabad College of physiotherapy, Margalla Institute of Health Sciences, Islamabad, Pakistan
  • Muhammad Kashif Riphah College of Rehabilitation and Allied Health Sciences, Riphah International University, Islamabad campus, Pakistan
  • Maryam Zafar Islam College of Physical Therapist, Sialkot, Pakistan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54393/pjhs.v3i07.391

Keywords:

Musculoskeletal manipulations, Myofascial pain syndromes, Shoulder pain, Trigger points

Abstract

Patients with chronic shoulder pain often experience myofascial trigger points. An ischemic compression (IC) slows blood flow and relieves tension by applying sustained digital pressure for a specific period of time. MET, which stands for Muscle Energy Technique, is another manual method for releasing muscle tension (inhibition). Objective: To compare the effectiveness of muscle energy technique and ischemic compression on myofascial trigger points in patients with chronic shoulder pain. Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, 40 patients were enrolled from Physical Therapy Department, DHQ hospital Faisalabad, during September 2018 to March 2019. Patients were allocated into two groups. Muscle energy technique was applied on group A (n=20) and ischemic compression was applied on group B (n=20). Both groups received treatment three days a week for four weeks. Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder and Hand questionnaire, Neck Disability Index, Visual Analogue Scale and Goniometer were used to take measurements at baseline and after four weeks of treatment. SPSS 20.0 was used for data entry and analysis. Difference between two treatments was determined by using independent t-test. Results: A statistically significant difference was found between the two groups for all outcome measures (p < 0.05) at four weeks follow-up. Conclusions: Results suggest that muscle energy technique seems more effective compared to ischemic compression in terms of decreasing pain, upper limb and neck disability and improving shoulder mobility in patients with chronic shoulder pain having myofascial trigger points.

References

Sergienko S and Kalichman L. Myofascial origin of shoulder pain: a literature review. Journal of bodywork and movement therapies. 2015 Jan; 19(1): 91-101. doi: 10.1016/j.jbmt.2014.05.004.

Mitchell C, Adebajo A, Hay E, Carr A. Shoulder pain: diagnosis and management in primary care. BMJ. 2005 Nov; 331(7525): 1124-8. doi: 10.1136/bmj.331.7525.1124.

Hidalgo-Lozano A, Fernández-de-las-Peñas C, Alonso-Blanco C, Ge H-Y, Arendt-Nielsen L, Arroyo-Morales M. Muscle trigger points and pressure pain hyperalgesia in the shoulder muscles in patients with unilateral shoulder impingement: a blinded, controlled study. Experimental brain research. 2010 May; 202(4): 915-25. doi: 10.1007/s00221-010-2196-4.

Bron C, Dommerholt J, Stegenga B, Wensing M, Oostendorp RA. High prevalence of shoulder girdle muscles with myofascial trigger points in patients with shoulder pain. BMC musculoskeletal disorders. 2011 Dec; 12(1): 139. doi: 10.1186/1471-2474-12-139.

Javed MA, Saleem S, Hassan Raza MK. Management of muscle trigger points causing subacromial pain using dry needling technique - a case report. JPMA The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association. 2020 Dec; 70(12(a)): 2270-2. doi: 10.47391/JPMA.125.

Bron C, Wensing M, Franssen JL, Oostendorp RA. Treatment of myofascial trigger points in common shoulder disorders by physical therapy: a randomized controlled trial [ISRCTN75722066]. BMC musculoskeletal disorders. 2007 Nov; 8(1): 1-8. doi: 10.1186/1471-2474-8-107.

Gerwin RD, Shannon S, Hong C-Z, Hubbard D, Gevirtz R. Interrater reliability in myofascial trigger point examination. Pain. 1997 Jan; 69(1-2): 65-73. doi: 10.1016/S0304-3959(96)03248-4.

Ribeiro DC, Belgrave A, Naden A, Fang H, Matthews P, Parshottam S. The prevalence of myofascial trigger points in neck and shoulder-related disorders: a systematic review of the literature. BMC musculoskeletal disorders. 2018 Jul; 19(1): 1-13. doi: 10.1186/s12891-018-2157-9.

Basak T, Pal TK, Sasi MM, Agarwal S. A comparative study on the efficacy of ischemic compression and dry needling with muscle energy technique in patients with upper trapezius myofascial trigger points. International Journal of Health Sciences and Research. 2018 Apr; 8(4): 74-81.

Simons DG. Myofascial pain syndrome due to trigger points. International rehabilitation medicine association. 1987 Nov: 1-39.

Bron C, Franssen J, Wensing M, Oostendorp RA. Interrater reliability of palpation of myofascial trigger points in three shoulder muscles. Journal of Manual & Manipulative Therapy. 2007 Oct; 15(4): 203-15. doi: 10.1179/106698107790819477.

Davies C and Davies A. The trigger point therapy workbook: your self-treatment guide for pain relief. New Harbinger Publications; 2013 Sep.

Hsueh TC, Yu S, Kuan TS, Hong CZ. Association of active myofascial trigger points and cervical disc lesions. Journal of the Formosan Medical Association. 1998 Mar; 97(3): 174-80.

de las Peñas CF, Campo MS, Carnero JF, Page JCM. Manual therapies in myofascial trigger point treatment: a systematic review. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies. 2005 Jan; 9(1): 27-34. doi: 10.1016/j.jbmt.2003.11.001.

Nambi G, Sharma R, Inbasekaran D, Vaghesiya A, Bhatt U. Difference in effect between ischemic compression and muscle energy technique on upper trepezius myofascial trigger points: Comparative study. International Journal of Health & Allied Sciences. 2013 Jan; 2(1): 17-22. doi: 10.4103/2278-344x.110570.

Noor R and Afzal B. Comparative Study of Treatment of Trigger Points Pain with Two Techniques. 1 Muscle Energy Technique Alone 2. Combined Approach. Int Journal of Science and Research. 2016 April; 5(4): 1825-9. doi: 10.21275/v5i4.nov162955.

Sbardella S, La Russa C, Bernetti A, Mangone M, Guarnera A, Pezzi L, et al. Muscle Energy Technique in the Rehabilitative Treatment for Acute and Chronic Non-Specific Neck Pain: A Systematic Review. Healthcare. 2021 Jun; 9(6): 746. doi: 10.3390/healthcare9060746.

Sadria G, Hosseini M, Rezasoltani A, Bagheban AA, Davari A, Seifolahi A. A comparison of the effect of the active release and muscle energy techniques on the latent trigger points of the upper trapezius. Journal of bodywork and movement therapies. 2017 Oct; 21(4): 920-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jbmt.2016.10.005.

Kumar GY, Sneha P, Sivajyothi N. Effectiveness of Muscle energy technique, Ischemic compression and Strain counter strain on Upper Trapezius Trigger Points: A comparative study. International journal of physical education, sports and health. 2015 Jan; 1(3): 22-6.

Kashif M, Tahir S, Ashfaq F, Farooq S, Saeed W. Association of myofascial trigger points in neck and shoulder region with depression, anxiety and stress among university students. Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association. 2021 Nov; 71(9): 2139-42. doi: 10.47391/JPMA.375.

Gupta J, Pimpale S, Gupta M. Comparative Study between the Effects of Muscle Energy Technique and Ischemic Compression on Patients with Chronic Shoulder Pain. Indian journal of physiotherapy and occupational therapy. 2018 July; 12(3): 79. doi: 10.5958/0973-5674.2018.00061.8.

Kashyap R, Iqbal A, Alghadir AH. Controlled intervention to compare the efficacies of manual pressure release and the muscle energy technique for treating mechanical neck pain due to upper trapezius trigger points. Journal of pain research. 2018 Dec; 11: 3151-60. doi: 10.2147/JPR.S172711.

Shah N, Shah N. Comparison of two treatment techniques: Muscle energy technique and Ischemic compression on upper trapezius trigger point in subjects with non-specific neck pain. International Journal of Therapies and Rehabilitation Research. 2015 Oct; 4(5): 260-64. doi: 10.5455/ijtrr.000000100.

Junaid M, Yaqoob I, Shakil Ur Rehman S, Ghous M. Effects of post-isometric relaxation, myofascial trigger point release and routine physical therapy in management of acute mechanical neck pain: a randomized controlled trial. JPMA The Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association. 2020 Oct; 70(10): 1688-92. doi: 10.5455/JPMA.15939.

Gilani MHZ, Obaid S, Tariq M. Comparison between Effectiveness of Ischemic Compression and Muscle Energy Technique in Upper Trapezius Myofascial Trigger Points. Isra Medical Journal. 2018 Jul; 10(4): 230-34.

Thomas E, Cavallaro AR, Mani D, Bianco A, Palma A. The efficacy of muscle energy techniques in symptomatic and asymptomatic subjects: a systematic review. Chiropractic & manual therapies. 2019 Aug; 27(1): 35. doi: 10.1186/s12998-019-0258-7.

Downloads

Published

2022-12-31
CITATION
DOI: 10.54393/pjhs.v3i07.391
Published: 2022-12-31

How to Cite

Bashir, K. ., Salman Bashir, M. ., Nazim Farooq, M. ., Amjad, F. ., Kashif, M. ., & Zafar, M. . (2022). Comparison Between the Effectiveness of Muscle Energy Technique and Ischemic Compression On Myofascial Trigger Points in Patients with Chronic Shoulder Pain: Muscle Energy Technique and Ischemic Compression on Myofascial Trigger Points. Pakistan Journal of Health Sciences, 3(07), 70–73. https://doi.org/10.54393/pjhs.v3i07.391

Issue

Section

Original Article

Plaudit

Most read articles by the same author(s)

<< < 1 2