Effect of dry needling on myofascial pain syndrome of the quadratus femoris: A case report

ABSTRACT

This case report describes a 40-year-old male who presented with posterior thigh pain managed unsuccessfully with massage therapy, chiropractic adjustments, and physical therapy. The diagnosis of myofascial pain syndrome (MPS) involving the quadratus femoris (QF) was purely clinical, based on palpatory findings and ruling out other conditions through deductive reasoning. This is potentially a first time report, describing the successful management of MPS of the QF with dry needling (DN) using a recently published DN grading system. Immediate improvements were noted in all the outcome measures after the first treatment, with complete pain-resolution maintained at a 4-month follow-up.

KEYWORDS:

• Dry needling
• intramuscular stimulation
• intramuscular therapy
• trigger point
• trigger point dry needling
• myofascial pain syndrome
• quadratus femoris
• short lateral rotators
• hip

Acknowledgment

The author thanks Chris Les MPT, Megan Sawatsky MPT, and Lori Stevens for their assistance in preparing this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.