Clinical trial NCT05226611: The Effect of Counterstrain Technique on Muscle Stiffness and Pain on Trapezius Tender Points in Medical Students
Official title: The Effect of Counterstrain Technique on Muscle Stiffness and Pain on Trapezius Tender Points in Medical Students
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Counterstrain
MyotonPRO
Tender Points
Keywords: Counterstrain
MyotonPRO
Tender points
Medical Students
Lead sponsor: New York Institute of Technology
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2022-02-07
Enrollment: 27
Sex: ALL
Standard ages: CHILD
ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: NA
Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: Medical students are prone to developing neck pain due to prolonged studying and poor posture. This can manifest as tender points in the upper trapezius region. Counterstrain (CS) is an osteopathic manipulative technique that has shown efficacy in previous studies in treating tender points. The MyotonPRO is a myotonometric device that can be used to measure various muscle parameters such as muscle stiffness. There is limited research regarding the use of osteopathic manipulative medicine to produce measurable changes in muscle stiffness by the MyotonPRO. This educational study aims to establish the efficacy of CS technique in decreasing the pain level of upper trapezius tender points in medical students as well as determining if CS causes a significant decrease in muscle stiffness in treated tender points as measured by the MyotonPRO. The investigators hope this educational study will encourage further studies on how osteopathic manipulative techniques affects the physiologic parameters of muscles.


Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Subject is at least 18 years of age

Exclusion Criteria:

* Traumatized (sprained or strained) tissues, which would be negatively affected by the positioning of the patient
* Illness or other conditions in which strict positional restrictions preclude treatment
* Instability of the area being positioned that has the potential to produce unwanted neurologic or vascular side effects
* Vascular or neurologic syndromes, such as basilar insufficiency or neural foraminal compromise whereby the position of treatment has the potential to exacerbate the condition
* Severe degenerative spondylosis with local fusion and no motion at the level where treatment positioning would normally take place
* Pregnancy
* Positive for COVID-19 as well as symptoms indicating a SARS-CoV-2 infection

Primary outcomes:
measure: Pain level
timeFrame: This was done immediately before and immediately after counterstrain treatment. Counterstrain treatment is a hands-on osteopathic manipulative technique that involves shortening the muscle belly of the painful region.
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Muscle Stiffness
timeFrame: This was done immediately before and immediately after counterstrain treatment. Counterstrain treatment is a hands-on osteopathic manipulative technique that involves shortening the muscle belly of the painful region.
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Glen Head
country: United States
facility: NYIT College of Osteopathic Medicine
state: New York
Study officials:
References: