Evaluating the effectiveness of patient-tailored treatment for patients with non-specific (sub)acute neck pain.

Background: An important issue in the debate about best practice management of non-specific neck pain (NSNP) is the effectiveness of tailored versus generalized interventions.

Methods: Participants with (sub)acute NSNP were randomly allocated to a patient-tailored treatment (PTT), non-patient-tailored treatment (NPTT) or control group (no intervention). The outcome measures were pain (NPRS), disability (NDI), global perceived effect and satisfaction (GPES), productivity costs, and medical consumption.

Excitation of the bottom-up pathways has no effect on remote muscle fatigue in healthy participants.

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of induced excitation of the bottom-up pathways at the lateral elbow muscles on local muscle fatigue in the neck region in healthy participants. Eligible participants (n:55) were randomly allocated to an intervention group (n:28) or a control group (n:27). The fatigue of bilateral neck flexor(sternocleidomastoid) and extensor (upper trapezius) muscles was evaluated using surface electromyography, at baseline and immediately post-intervention during a neck flexor and extensor endurance test respectively.

"It is something you live with, like an organ in your body" a qualitative study on the lived experiences of people suffering from chronic low back pain in Lebanon.

Purpose: This paper aims to understand the distinctive biopsychosocial aspects and patient perspectives on chronic low back pain in Lebanon, an Arab country with a unique and rich cultural heritage.

Method: Qualitative, semi-structured interviews with 12 Lebanese patients purposefully sampled from various governorates. The interviews included participants from different geographic areas and religions.

Online Exercise Programs for Chronic Nonspecific Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial Reveals Comparable Effects of Global, Local, and Combined Approaches.

Objective: Specific neck exercises are recommended in the rehabilitation of chronic nonspecific neck pain (CNNP). They are unfortunately often accompanied by acute pain flare-ups. Global exercises might be a beneficial addition, as they activate endogenous analgesia without overloading painful structures.

Influence of sensory retraining on cortical reorganization in peripheral neuropathy: A systematic review.

Objective: This study systematically reviewed the literature about sensory retraining effect in comparison to other rehabilitative techniques on cortical reorganization in patients with peripheral neuropathic pain. TYPE: Systematic review.

Literature Survey: After an electronic search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Embase, risk of bias was assessed using the revised Cochrane risk of bias tool for randomized controlled trials and the ROBINS-1 (Risk of bias in non-randomized studies-of interventions) for non-randomized studies of intervention.

Suffering from chronic tinnitus, chronic neck pain, or both: Does it impact the presence of signs and symptoms of central sensitization?

Chronic subjective tinnitus is a prevalent symptom, which has many similarities with chronic pain. Central sensitization is considered as a possible underlying mechanism of both symptoms. Central sensitization has already been investigated in chronic pain populations but not in patients with chronic subjective tinnitus.

Comparing tinnitus, pain, psychosocial and cognitive factors between patients with tinnitus and pain: A systematic review.

Objective: Tinnitus is a multifactorial symptom, which shows similarities with the involved mechanisms in chronic pain. The aim of this systematic review is to provide an overview of studies comparing patients with only tinnitus to patients with pain (headache, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain or neck pain) with or without tinnitus, regarding tinnitus-related, pain-related, psychosocial and cognitive factors.

Methods: This systematic review was written following the PRISMA guidelines.

Clinical Effectiveness of Dry Needling in Patients with Musculoskeletal Pain-An Umbrella Review.

The number of systematic reviews (SR) summarizing the literature regarding the clinical effects of Dry Needling (DN) has increased rapidly. Yet, rigorous evidence about the clinical effectiveness of this technique is still lacking. The aim of this umbrella review is to summarize the evidence about the clinical effects of trigger point DN on musculoskeletal disorders across all body regions.

Immediate effects of dry needling on pain sensitivity and pain modulation in patients with chronic idiopathic neck pain: a single-blinded randomized clinical trial.

Background: Dry needling is frequently used for the treatment of neck pain but knowledge about its neurophysiological central effects is scarce.

Objectives: To compare the immediate effects of a single session of dry needling (DN) and sham needling (SN) on local and distant pressure pain thresholds and conditioned pain modulation in patients with chronic idiopathic neck pain.

Method: Participants with chronic idiopathic neck pain were randomly allocated to a DN or SN group.

Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of pain neuroscience education in the current Lebanese physical therapist health care approach: a qualitative study.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper was first to gain an in-depth understanding of the barriers and facilitators to implementing the BPS model and pain neuroscience education in the current Lebanese physical therapy health care approach and explore its acceptability.

Method: A qualitative semi-structured interview using purposive sampling was conducted with eight Lebanese physical therapists practising in different governorates. The transcribed text from the interviews was analyzed using inductive thematic analysis.

The Effect of Praying on Endogenous Pain Modulation and Pain Intensity in Healthy Religious Individuals in Lebanon: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Prayer is considered to be the most common therapy used in alternative medicine. This study aimed to explore the effect of prayers on endogenous pain modulation, pain intensity, and sensitivity in healthy religious participants. A total of 208 healthy religious participants were enrolled in this study and randomly distributed into two groups, a prayer group (n = 156) and a poem reading or control group (n = 52).

Systemic Cytokine Level Differences in Patients with Chronic Musculoskeletal Spinal Pain Compared to Healthy Controls and Its Association with Pain Severity: A Systematic Review.

Objective: Although there has been increasing interest in the role of systemic cytokines in chronic spinal pain (CSP), the evidence on their potential contribution is still unclear. Therefore, the current study systematically reviewed the evidence on systemic cytokine level differences between people with CSP compared to healthy controls (HCs) and the potential associations with pain severity.

Methods: An electronic search was conducted on PubMed, Web of Science and Embase.

Specific versus Non-Specific Exercises for Chronic Neck or Shoulder Pain: A Systematic Review.

The current systematic review aimed to compare the effect of injury-focused (specific) exercises versus more general (non-specific) exercises on pain in patients with chronic neck or shoulder pain. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science. Two reviewers screened and selected studies, extracted outcomes, assessed risk of bias, and rated the quality of evidence.

Exploring the Underlying Mechanisms of Action of Dry Needling: What Is the Immediate Effect on Muscle Electrophysiology? An Experimental Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: Dry needling is a commonly used treatment technique for myofascial pain syndromes, such as trapezius myalgia. Despite the shown positive clinical effects on pain, the underlying mechanisms of action, such as the effect on muscle electrophysiology, remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of dry needling, compared with sham needling, in the upper trapezius muscle on surface electromyography activity and the relation with pain in office workers with trapezius myalgia.

The effect of one dry needling session on pain, central pain processing, muscle co-contraction and gait characteristics in patients with knee osteoarthritis: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: To assess the immediate and three days postintervention effect of one dry needling session compared to one sham needling session on pain, central pain processing, muscle co-contraction and spatiotemporal parameters during gait in knee osteoarthritis patients.

Methods: A double-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted. Sixty-one knee osteoarthritis patients were randomly assigned to the dry needling or sham needling group.

Religious Beliefs and Attitudes in Relation to Pain, Pain-Related Beliefs, Function, and Coping in Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review.

Background: The biopsychosocial-spiritual model recognizes the impact of religious factors in modulating the experience of pain. Religious beliefs are factors that can influence perceptions, emotions, and behavior, all of which have important implications on health, pain experience, and treatment outcomes.

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to identify if and how religious beliefs and attitudes can influence pain intensity, pain interference, pain-related beliefs and cognitions, emotions, and coping among patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain.

Evaluating the effectiveness of patient tailored treatment for patients with non-specific low back pain: A systematic review.

Objective: This systematic review summarizes the relevant literature on the effectiveness of tailored interventions in non-specific low back pain (NSLBP).

Methods: The search strategy has been executed in December 2019 in the electronic databases PubMed, Web of Science and Embase. Study selection, data extraction and quality assessment were done independently by two authors.

Hippocampal Sclerosis in Frontotemporal Dementia: When Vascular Pathology Meets Neurodegeneration.

Hippocampal sclerosis (HS) is a common neuropathological finding and has been associated with advanced age, TDP-43 proteinopathy, and cerebrovascular pathology. We analyzed neuropathological data of an autopsy cohort of early-onset frontotemporal dementia patients. The study aimed to determine whether in this cohort HS was related to TDP-43 proteinopathy and whether additional factors could be identified.

Foci of Segmentally Contracted Sarcomeres in Trapezius Muscle Biopsy Specimens in Myalgic and Nonmyalgic Human Subjects: Preliminary Results.

Objective: The myofascial trigger point hypothesis postulates that there are small foci of contracted sarcomeres in resting skeletal muscle. Only one example, in canine muscle, has been published previously. This study evaluated human muscle biopsies for foci of contracted sarcomeres.

Differences in the Mitochondrial and Lipid Droplet Morphology in Female Office Workers With Trapezius Myalgia, Compared With Healthy Controls: A Muscle Biopsy Study.

Objective: Trapezius myalgia or, more specifically, myofascial dysfunction of the upper trapezius mainly affects women performing jobs requiring prolonged low level activation of the muscle. This continuous low muscle load can be accompanied by a shift to a more anaerobic energy metabolism, causing pain. The aim of the study was to investigate whether morphological signs of an impaired aerobic metabolism are present in female office workers with trapezius myalgia.

Development of culturally sensitive Pain Neuroscience Education for first-generation Turkish patients with chronic pain: A modified Delphi study.

Background: Pain Neuroscience Education (PNE) has been recognized as an efficacious approach for chronic pain, but evidence for these findings have mainly been gathered in Caucasian patient populations. In recent years, it has been proposed that the treatment of pain and patient information materials should be culturally sensitive for different ethnic populations and cultures since cultural variations in pain beliefs and cognitions.

Objectives: To culturally adapt PNE material for first-generation Turkish patients with chronic pain.

Morphological Differences in the Upper Trapezius Muscle Between Female Office Workers With and Without Trapezius Myalgia: Facts or Fiction?: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Objective: Work-related trapezius myalgia is a common musculoskeletal disorder in office workers. Prolonged low-level muscle activity during office work may lead to morphological changes in the muscle tissue, causing pain and fatigue. The aim of the present study was to investigate differences in muscle morphology between office workers with and without trapezius myalgia.

Clinical classification criteria for nonspecific low back pain: A Delphi-survey of clinical experts.

Background: Nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP) is a common problem. Attempts have been made to classify NSLBP patients into homogenous subgroups. Classification systems based on identifying the underlying mechanism(s) driving the disorder are clinically useful to guide specific interventions.

The impact of different lenses on visual and musculoskeletal complaints in VDU workers with work-related neck complaints: a randomized controlled trial.

Objectives: The impact of wearing lenses on visual and musculoskeletal complaints in VDU workers is currently unknown. The goal of this study was 1) to evaluate the impact of wearing VDU lenses on visual fatigue and self-reported neck pain and disability, compared to progressive lenses, and 2) to measure the effect of both lenses on head inclination and pressure pain thresholds during the performance of a VDU task.

Methods: Thirty-five eligible subjects were randomly assigned to wear progressive VDU lenses (VDU group) (n = 18) or progressive lenses (P group) (n = 17).

Surface Electromyographic Activity of the Upper Trapezius Before and After a Single Dry Needling Session in Female Office Workers With Trapezius Myalgia.

Objective: Myofascial pain can be accompanied by a disturbed surface electromyographic (sEMG) activity. Nevertheless, the effect of myofascial treatment techniques, such as dry needling (DN), on the sEMG activity is poorly investigated. Several DN studies also emphasize the importance of eliciting local twitch responses (LTRs) during treatment.