ORIGINAL RESEARCH
COMPARISON OF DRY NEEDLING VS. SHAM ON THE PERFORMANCE OF VERTICAL JUMP
William D Bandy, PT, PhD, SCS1Russell Nelson, PT, PhD, SCS, ATC2Lisa Beamer, PT, DPT2
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Dry needling has been reported to decrease pain in subjects having myofascial trigger points, as well as pain in muscle and connective tissue.
Objective: The purpose of the study was to compare the effects on the ability to perform a two-legged verti- cal jump between a group who received one bout of dry needling and a group who received one bout of a sham treatment.
Methods: Thirty-five healthy students (19 males, 16 females) were recruited to participate in this study (mean age 22.7+/- 2.4 years). The subjects were randomly divided into two groups- dry needling (n=18) vs sham (n=17). The dry needling group received needling to four sites on bilateral gastrocnemius mus- cles; two at the medial head and two at the lateral head. The sham group had the four areas of the gastroc- nemius muscle pressed with the tube housing the needle, but the needle was never inserted into the skin. Two-legged vertical jump was measured with chalk marks on the wall before and after the dry needling and sham treatments.
Results: Analysis with a t-test indicated that the dry needling group significantly increased vertical jump height 1.2 inches over the sham group.
Conclusion: One bout of dry needling showed an immediate effect at significantly increasing vertical jump height in healthy, young adults. Future research is needed to determine if dry needling has any long- term effects.
Level of Evidence: 2b
Key Words: dry needling, trigger points, vertical jump
https://spts.org/docs/default-source/v12n5/ijspt-12_5-05-nelson_abs.pdf?sfvrsn=ce29eb64_2
Analysis by Dr. Mark Rathjen PT DPT CSCS
Dry needling is a modality that has been used for more than 30 years in the field of physical therapy. More recently, we are understanding more about how and why it works. In the study above we see an increase of 1.2 inches on vertical jump height. This is likely a 4-5% increase in these athletes after the treatment. Is this voodoo? NO, taking tension out of a muscle or pulley ( what a tendon is) creates a more efficient recruitment of the muscle. As it become more effecting without a hang up on a trigger point, the muscle can contract at full velocity.
Will this work for every patient, NO. Will this be a permanent increase? Maybe; if the tightness stays at bay. What this does show, is that Trigger point dry needling works to release tension in the trigger, nearly immediate, and can be shown functionally. Also, it can be show on an Ultrasound image as well.
We know Trigger point dry needling works, we know how it works, and we know how to use it for our patients. There are many types of patients that can benefit from the treatment, are you one of them?
CORE Physical Therapy, This is who we are, this is what we do.