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Published on: July 5, 2017
Myofascial Pain Syndrome in the Elderly and Self-Exercise: A Single-Blind, Randomized, Controlled Trial
Minhee Kim1, Minyoung Lee1, Yushin Kim2
11 Department of Physical Therapy, College of Health Science, Korea University , Seoul, South Korea .
Objective:
This study aimed to demonstrate the effect of self-exercise with a therapeutic inflatable ball (SEIB) in elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome.
Design:
Single-blind, randomized, controlled noninferiority trial.
Setting:
University campus.
Participants:
Forty elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome completed the study. They were randomly allocated to SEIB (n = 22; mean age, 70.23 ± 6.11 years) or ultrasound (US) therapy (n = 18; mean age, 67.99 ± 5.64 years).
Intervention:
SEIB and US therapy (twice weekly for 4 consecutive weeks).
Outcome Measures:
Visual analog scale (VAS), pressure pain threshold (PPT), and cervical lateral flexion (CLF) were measured at baseline and at 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks.
Results:
The noninferiority test indicated that SEIB was not inferior to US for VAS, PPT, and CLF. Between-group comparisons showed no significant differences in the VAS (F = 2.579; p = 0.117), the PPT (F = 0.245; p = 0.624), and the CLF (F = 2.072; p = 0.159). In within-group comparisons, both groups presented significant differences in VAS (SEIB after 1 week and US after 1 week), PPT (SEIB after 3 weeks and US after 4 weeks), and CLF (SEIB after 4 weeks and US after 4 weeks) compared with baseline values.
Conclusions:
SEIB for 4 weeks has an effect similar to that of US for desensitizing myofascial pain and increasing joint flexibility. High accessibility and low cost would make SEIB a practical self-treatment method in elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome.
