Effects of active head retraction with retraction/extension and occipital release on the pressure pain threshold of cervical and scapular trigger points

Abstract

Pain in the cervical and scapular regions is often associated with trigger points in these regions. Although there are many types of manual therapies used in the clinic to relieve trigger points, there is no documented research to validate their efficacy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a single session of each of two manual therapy techniques on the pressure pain thresholds of trigger points in the cervical and scapular regions. Sixty volunteers with one or more trigger points were recruited. Subjects were randomly assigned to groups receiving one treatment session of head retraction and retraction/extension exercises, occipital release, or no treatment. A pre-test and post-test of pressure pain threshold were performed on each subject using a pressure algometer. A one-way analysis of covariance, using the pre-test as the covariate, was conducted to analyse the data. The results of the analysis indicated that there were no significant differences between the groups. No changes in trigger point sensitivity, as measured by pressure pain thresholds, were found after one treatment of retraction with retraction/extension exercises and one treatment of occipital release. One treatment of either retraction with retraction/extension exercises or occipital release is not effective in changing the pressure pain thresholds of cervical and scapular trigger points. Further studies need to address the effectiveness of multiple treatment sessions for each technique.