Does one session of dry needling effect vital capacity in people with Parkinson's Disease?

Respiratory function problems are caused by both motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinsons disease (PD). One major problem involving the changes in respiratory function in people with PD is a decrease in chest movement caused by musculoskeletal problems around the neck and upper trunk. The relationship between these respiratory changes and pulmonary volume in people with PD can lead to the main cause of mortality as the disease progresses. Dry needling technique (DNT) is a myofascial release technique that has been reported to provide an immediate effect on pain, decreased muscle spasm or tightness and lead to restoration of range of motion of upper trunk by using needles to stimulate hypersensitive and painful nodules in the musculature called trigger points (TP). However, to date, the use of this technique has not been reported to release muscle tightness or pain in people with PD. The present study aimed to explore the effects of a single session of bilateral DNT to the trapezius muscles trigger point on chest expansion and vital capacity which could lead to improvements in respiratory function in people with PD. Thirty-eight people with PD were randomly allocated to DN and Sham needling treatment groups. The maximum and mean volumes of vital capacity were assessed by using a ventilometer at pre-intervention, immediately after intervention, and one-week follow-up. Mixed Model Analysis of Variance (MM ANOVA) tests with post hoc pairwise comparisons were used to test the differences between groups and assessment time points. No interaction effects were found between groups and assessment time points for maximum and mean vital capacity volume. In addition, no statistically significant main effects of DNT were found for both groups and assessment time points for either maximum or mean vital capacity volume. These findings can provide evidence that a single session of dry needling does not help to improve respiratory function in people with PD. However, slight improvements in vital capacity were observed in the DN group, which may be clinically relevant when considering progressive neurodegenerative disease. More sessions of dry needling need to be explored over a greater time period to determine if longer term effect are possible with this treatment.