The Effects of Intramuscular Electrical Stimulation on Clinical And Sonographic Parameters in Patient With Trigger Points: A Case Series Study

Objective: Myofascial pain syndrome is a common disorder with a prevalence of up to 85%. It is characterized by the presence of trigger points, which all people are commonly encountered at least once throughout their lifespan. Different physical therapy and medical treatments have used to manage myofascial pain syndrome. Intramuscular electrical stimulation intervention is a relatively new treatment option for musculoskeletal pain. This study aimed to examine the effects of intramuscular electrical stimulation intervention on clinical and ultrasound imaging parameters related to trigger points in patients with upper trapezius trigger points. Materials and Methods: This study is a case-series research. 12 participants with upper trapezius muscle trigger points have included in this study. They were treated three times during one week with intramuscular electrical stimulation. Before and after the interventions, pain and cervical rotation range of motion were assessed with a visual analog scale and goniometry. Sonographic parameters including; trigger point longitudinal diameter and area and also upper trapezius muscle thickness were assessed with B-mode ultrasound imaging. The pre-post values were compared using the paired sample t-test with the level of significance at 0.05. Results: At the end of three sessions with intramuscular electrical stimulation, pain and cervical rotation range of motion improved significantly (P <0.05). All ultrasound imaging measurements, including trigger point longitudinal diameter and area and also upper trapezius muscle thickness decreased significantly compared to baseline measurements (P<0.05). Conclusion: Intramuscular electrical stimulation intervention seems to has promising effects on clinical and ultrasound imaging parameters in patients with trigger point in the upper trapezius muscle. Further studies with larger sample size are required to investigate the long-term effects of intramuscular electrical stimulation with the inclusion of matched control groups.