Dry Needling for Cervicogenic Headache

Youngstown State University30 enrolled

Overview

Currently, it is unknown if dry needling when performed to the trigeminal innervation field improves neck pain and or headache for patients with cervicogenic headaches. The aim of this study is to determine if dry needling of the trigeminal innervation field improves pain, pain-pressure thresholds, and neck mobility in patients with cervicogenic headaches, with or without migraine.

Dry needling is a widely used intervention performed by physical therapists for a wide range of musculoskeletal and neurological conditions. Dry needling has been shown to be beneficial for cervicogenic headaches but treatment is typically applied to the neck. It is well-established that cervical pain can upregulate the trigeminal nerve and vice versa in various forms of headaches. Thus, it is plausable that reducing inflammation and irritation of the trigeminal nerve may in fact reduce neck pain and impairments. This study aims to look investigate whether dry needling the trigeminal innervation field will reduce pain and impairments known to exist in patients with cervicogenic headaches compared to a sham comparator. The study is a pilot trial for a larger RCT and will look at immediate effects only.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

TRIPLE

Enrollment

Conditions

Headache

Interventions

Dry NeedlingOTHER

1/2" needles will placed into defined innervation fields of the trigeminal nerve and rotated. Total time will be 5-7 minutes.

Sham Dry NeedlingOTHER

Needle handles inside of guide tubes will be tapped in a way similar to an actual needle being set but the sham needles will be blunted.

Eligibility

Sex: ALLMin age: 18 Years

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: * Aged 18 or older * Symptoms: (1)Unilateral pain starting in the neck and radiating to the frontotemporal region or posterior fossa, (2) pain aggravated by neck movement, (3) restricted cervical range of motion, (4) non-throbbing and non-lancinatingnpain, 5) dysfunction/headache pain in at least one of the joints of the upper cervical spine(C0-C4), and (6) headache frequency of at least 1 per week over a period greater than 3 months. Exclusion Criteria * Pain \<2/10 * Contraindications to the interventions * Whiplash associated disorder within 6 weeks * Pending litigation for neck pain and/or headache.

Locations (1)

Youngstown State University

Youngstown, Ohio, United States

RECRUITING

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

Headache or neck pain intensity on a Numeric pain rating scale (0-10)

0-10 scale pain intensity

Time frame: <1 hour

Secondary Outcomes

Active Range of Motion of the Cervical Spine in degrees of measurement

Active range of motion will be measured in the most painful and or limited plane of movement.

Time frame: <1 hour

Flexion-rotation test in degrees of measurement

Flexion-rotation test for CGH will be measured to determine any change in measure for c1-c2 mobility.

Time frame: <1 hour

Pain-pressure threshold in lbs of pressure

Pain-pressure threshold will be measured using an algometer at the innervation zones of the trigeminal nerve and the upper cervical spine.

Time frame: <1 hour

Central Contacts

David W Griswold, PhD

CONTACT

3307015353 dwgriswold@ysu.edu

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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