Trial reportJournal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.)2016
Myofascial Pain Syndrome in the Elderly and Self-Exercise: A Single-Blind, Randomized, Controlled Trial.
Trial report in Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.), 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 20 citations in OpenAlex.
- Therapeutic ultrasound versus injection of local anesthetic in the treatment of women with chronic pelvic pain secondary to abdominal myofascial syndrome: a randomized clinical trial.BMC women's health · 2022Trial
- Chronic Pain in Elderly Patients: Pathophysiology, Pharmacologic and Non-Pharmacologic Therapies, and Interventional Management.Clinical pharmacology : advances and applications · 2026Review
- Manipulative Treatment of Myofascial Pain Syndrome: A Network Meta-Analysis Based on Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of pain research · 2025Review
- The Role of Leopard Spot Technique Acupuncture for Shoulder Impingement with Myofascial Pain Syndrome.Sultan Qaboos University medical journal · 2025Article
- Preliminary evidence of safety and effectiveness of Loxoprofen Sodium Cataplasm combined with physiotherapy for myofascial pain syndrome treatment: A randomized controlled pilot clinical trial.Frontiers in neurology · 2022Article
- Expert consensus on the diagnosis and treatment of myofascial pain syndrome.World journal of clinical cases · 2021Review
- Effectiveness of therapeutic inflatable ball self-exercises for improving shoulder function and quality of life in breast cancer survivors after sentinel lymph node dissection.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2019Review
- Effectiveness of ultrasound therapy for myofascial pain syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of pain research · 2017Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThis study aimed to demonstrate the effect of self-exercise with a therapeutic inflatable ball (SEIB) in elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome.
designSingle-blind, randomized, controlled noninferiority trial.
settingUniversity campus.
participantsForty elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome completed the study. They were randomly allocated to SEIB (n = 22; mean age, 70.23 ± 6.11 years) or ultrasound (US) therapy (n = 18; mean age, 67.99 ± 5.64 years).
interventionSEIB and US therapy (twice weekly for 4 consecutive weeks). OUTCOME MEASURES: Visual analog scale (VAS), pressure pain threshold (PPT), and cervical lateral flexion (CLF) were measured at baseline and at 1, 2, 3, and 4 weeks.
resultsThe noninferiority test indicated that SEIB was not inferior to US for VAS, PPT, and CLF. Between-group comparisons showed no significant differences in the VAS (F = 2.579; p = 0.117), the PPT (F = 0.245; p = 0.624), and the CLF (F = 2.072; p = 0.159). In within-group comparisons, both groups presented significant differences in VAS (SEIB after 1 week and US after 1 week), PPT (SEIB after 3 weeks and US after 4 weeks), and CLF (SEIB after 4 weeks and US after 4 weeks) compared with baseline values.
conclusionsSEIB for 4 weeks has an effect similar to that of US for desensitizing myofascial pain and increasing joint flexibility. High accessibility and low cost would make SEIB a practical self-treatment method in elderly patients with myofascial pain syndrome.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.