Effectiveness of strain-counterstrain technique versus digital ischemic compression on myofascial trigger points

Background and Aim: Neck pain is a typical disorder among people from diverse populations. Myofascial trigger points are located on upper trapezius with a high incidence. These trigger points are commonly found in individuals with mechanical neck pain. This study was conducted to compare the effectiveness of strain-counterstrain and digital ischemic compression on pain, range of cervical lateral flexion and the Neck Disability Index (NDI) score in individuals with Myofascial trigger points of upper trapezius. Materials and Methods: Fifty-five subjects between the age group of 25–45 years clinically diagnosed with neck pain associated with myofascial trigger points were enrolled after ethical approval. Subjects were randomly allocated into Group A (n = 28) (Strain-counterstrain) and Group B (n = 27) (Ischemic compression) for 5 sessions in a week. Outcomes were measured using numerical pain rating scale for pain, NDI for disability and cervical lateral range of motion (ROM) using a goniometer. Results: The intragroup comparison was done using Wilcoxon signed-rank test whereas the intergroup comparison was done using the Mann–Whitney test for data that were not normally distributed. The level of significance was determined by P < 0.05 at 95% confidence interval. Statistically significant improvements were seen in both groups (P < 0.001) whereas in between group analysis, there was no statistically significant difference found (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Both techniques were equally effective in reducing pain, improving ROM of cervical lateral flexion, and NDI score in individuals with myofascial trigger points of upper trapezius.