Dry needling in stroke
Stroke causes acute neurological deficit which is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Neurorehabilitation is an important dimension in the management of post-stroke deficits. Spasticity, pain, and neurological deficits are contributors to post-stroke disability. Dry needling (DN) is a tec...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Open Exploration Publishing Inc.
2022-02-01
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| Series: | Exploration of Neuroprotective Therapy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.explorationpub.com/Journals/ent/Article/100416 |
| _version_ | 1819289908715454464 |
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| author | Nirmal Surya Guhan Ramamurthy |
| author_facet | Nirmal Surya Guhan Ramamurthy |
| author_sort | Nirmal Surya |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Stroke causes acute neurological deficit which is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Neurorehabilitation is an important dimension in the management of post-stroke deficits. Spasticity, pain, and neurological deficits are contributors to post-stroke disability. Dry needling (DN) is a technique commonly used in the management of myofascial pain. Recent evidence suggests its efficacy in the management of post-stroke disability. The descriptive review on the use of DN summarises the evidence for the management of post-stroke patients such as spasticity, balance, pain, functional outcome, tremor, and ultrasonographic evidence. The filiform needle is inserted into the target muscle until a local twitch response is obtained. The effects of DN are produced by the local stretch of the spastic muscle and afferent modulation of the reflex arc that decreases the excitability of the alpha motor neuron. The DN reduces muscle spasticity in post-stroke patients. The improved spasticity is translated to better functional outcomes and balance. The procedure is also shown to reduce pain including post-stroke shoulder pain. It is also shown to improve tremors in post-stroke patients. Ultrasonographic evidence of the beneficial effects of DN shows improved measures in the pennate angle and mean muscle thickness. Concurrent use of DN and electrical stimulation improve spasticity, the effect which may be seen for longer periods. DN is emerging as a useful and cost-effective technique in the management of post-stroke patients. The evidence for the use of DN in the management of post-stroke spasticity is high. However, more research is required to assess its efficacy in functional outcomes and other aspects of the stroke. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-24T03:14:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c76c5682b410497fbb49f5da09af0ee1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2769-6510 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-24T03:14:20Z |
| publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
| publisher | Open Exploration Publishing Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Exploration of Neuroprotective Therapy |
| spelling | doaj.art-c76c5682b410497fbb49f5da09af0ee12022-12-21T17:17:41ZengOpen Exploration Publishing Inc.Exploration of Neuroprotective Therapy2769-65102022-02-0121283510.37349/ent.2022.00016Dry needling in strokeNirmal Surya0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4023-4576Guhan Ramamurthy1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8697-8899Chairman Surya Neuro Centre Mumbai, President Indian Federation of Neurorehabilitation (IFNR), Mumbai 400020, India; Bombay Hospital and Medical Research Centre, Mumbai 400020, IndiaDepartment of Neurology and Neurorehabilitation, BG Hospital, Tiruchendur, Tuticorin 628216, IndiaStroke causes acute neurological deficit which is an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Neurorehabilitation is an important dimension in the management of post-stroke deficits. Spasticity, pain, and neurological deficits are contributors to post-stroke disability. Dry needling (DN) is a technique commonly used in the management of myofascial pain. Recent evidence suggests its efficacy in the management of post-stroke disability. The descriptive review on the use of DN summarises the evidence for the management of post-stroke patients such as spasticity, balance, pain, functional outcome, tremor, and ultrasonographic evidence. The filiform needle is inserted into the target muscle until a local twitch response is obtained. The effects of DN are produced by the local stretch of the spastic muscle and afferent modulation of the reflex arc that decreases the excitability of the alpha motor neuron. The DN reduces muscle spasticity in post-stroke patients. The improved spasticity is translated to better functional outcomes and balance. The procedure is also shown to reduce pain including post-stroke shoulder pain. It is also shown to improve tremors in post-stroke patients. Ultrasonographic evidence of the beneficial effects of DN shows improved measures in the pennate angle and mean muscle thickness. Concurrent use of DN and electrical stimulation improve spasticity, the effect which may be seen for longer periods. DN is emerging as a useful and cost-effective technique in the management of post-stroke patients. The evidence for the use of DN in the management of post-stroke spasticity is high. However, more research is required to assess its efficacy in functional outcomes and other aspects of the stroke.https://www.explorationpub.com/Journals/ent/Article/100416dry needlingspasticitypost-stroke painbalance |
| spellingShingle | Nirmal Surya Guhan Ramamurthy Dry needling in stroke Exploration of Neuroprotective Therapy dry needling spasticity post-stroke pain balance |
| title | Dry needling in stroke |
| title_full | Dry needling in stroke |
| title_fullStr | Dry needling in stroke |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dry needling in stroke |
| title_short | Dry needling in stroke |
| title_sort | dry needling in stroke |
| topic | dry needling spasticity post-stroke pain balance |
| url | https://www.explorationpub.com/Journals/ent/Article/100416 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nirmalsurya dryneedlinginstroke AT guhanramamurthy dryneedlinginstroke |