Comparative Clinical Efficacy of Dry Needling and Kinesio Taping in the Management of Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

The persistent pain that individuals experience in their necks is a common musculoskeletal illness that has a significant impact on their ability to go about their daily lives and their overall quality of life. In this randomised controlled trial, kinesio taping and dry needling were compared with the purpose of determining whether approach is more helpful in the treatment of chronic neck discomfort. Sixty individuals who were experiencing recurrent neck stiffness were split into two groups: one group would undergo kinesio taping, while the other group would receive dry needling. Over the course of a period of four weeks, the interventions were carried out on each of the groups on a biweekly basis. Among the outcome measures that were examined at the beginning of the intervention, two weeks into the intervention, and three weeks after the intervention was completed, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain and the Neck Disability Index (NDI) were among them. It was shown that both therapy resulted in a significant reduction in both disability and pain (p < 0.05). On the other hand, the group who had dry needling saw a more rapid decrease in the severity of their pain, but the group that received kinesio taping shown a greater increase in functional support and postural correction. Despite the fact that the findings suggest that both approaches are useful in clinical settings, the selection of one over the other may differ from patient to patient depending on the specific features of the individual and the therapeutic goals that they want to achieve.