J Korean Pain Soc.  2003 Jun;16(1):54-59.

Assessment of Intramuscular Stimulation in Patients with Myofascial Pain Syndrome Using Thermography

• Nam SG
• Jeon IS
• Heo HM
• Hwang KH
• Park W

Abstract

BACKGROUND
Intramuscular stimulation (IMS) is used for the diagnosis and treatment of myofascial pain syndrome (MPS). The first goal of IMS is to alleviate muscle shortening. A dry needle is inserted at the motor point known to be the most sensitive point for this purpose. The intensity of pain is difficult to evaluate as it is a subjective property. Infrared thermography has recently been used for the objective evaluation of the patient's pain intensity. The therapeutic effect of IMS was investigated in patients with MPS, using infrared thermography. METHODS: Twenty-seven patients with MPS were studied. IMS was performed with no information about the thermographic finding. Visual analogue scales (VASpre and VASpost) and the thermography were taken just before, and five days after, the IMS. The differences in the temperature between the left and right side before and after the IMS (delta Tpre, delta Tpost) were obtained from thermographic images, and the change in delta T (delta dT = delta Tpre - delta Tpost) calculated. The data were analyzed with paired t-tests. RESULTS: The difference in the temperature between the left and right side following the IMS (delta Tpost) was significantly decreased (P< 0.05) compared to before the IMS (delta Tpre). The VAS following the IMS (VASpost) was also significantly decreased (P< 0.05) compared to before the IMS (VASpre). The correlation coefficient between delta dT and delta VAS was 0.743 (P< 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: It was concluded that infrared thermography could be an objective method for evaluating the therapeutic effect of IMS in patients with MPS.

Keyword

Infrared thermography; Intramuscular stimulation; Myofascial pain syndrome

MeSH Terms

Diagnosis
Humans
Myofascial Pain Syndromes*
Needles
Thermography*
Weights and Measures