SynthesisChiropractic & manual therapies2023
Effectiveness of deep dry needling versus manual therapy in the treatment of myofascial temporomandibular disorders: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Chiropractic & manual therapies, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06708377 (Comparison of Effects Of Dry Needling And Myofascial Massage Therapy On Masseter Muscle In Patients With Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction), which is not on this map. Cited by 11 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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.
Comparison of Effects Of Dry Needling And Myofascial Massage Therapy On Masseter Muscle In Patients With Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Efficacy of Myofascial Release Therapy and Related Soft-Tissue Techniques for Pain in Temporomandibular Disorders: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of oral rehabilitation · 2026Pooled it
- Advanced, pharmacological and complementary interventions for chronic or recurrent orofacial pain conditions: a systematic evidence map with selective meta-analyses.The journal of headache and pain · 2026Pooled it
- Comparison of the effectiveness of botulinum toxin, dry needling, pharmacological treatment, and manual therapy for bruxism-induced myalgia: a prospective randomized study.Journal of oral & facial pain and headache · 2024Trial
- Fascia as a Functional System in Health and Disease: From Fundamental Biology to Assessment and Targeted Interventions.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Comparative effectiveness of traditional East Asian medicine treatments for temporomandibular joint disorders: A systematic review and network meta-analysis.Integrative medicine research · 2025Review
- Silver needle thermal conduction therapy relieves pain in rats with myofascial pain syndrome.American journal of translational research · 2025Article
- Comparative Efficacy of Needling and Non-Needling Therapies for Temporomandibular Disorders: A Bayesian Network Meta-Analysis.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- Dry needling for orofacial pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.Pain reports · 2024Review
- Effects of Hyaluronic Acid (HA) and Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) on Mandibular Mobility in Temporomandibular Joint Disorders: A Controlled Clinical Trial.Biomolecules · 2024Article
- Temporomandibular Disorders Management-What's New? A Scoping Review.Dentistry journal · 2024Article
- Effect of dry needling, ischemic compression and cross-taping of the masseter in patients with orofacial myofascial pain: a randomized comparative study.Frontiers in oral health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundTemporomandibular disorders (TMDs) are the most common cause of orofacial pain of non-dental origin, with approximately 42% of diagnoses corresponding to myofascial pain. Manual therapy and dry needling are commonly used interventions for the treatment of myofascial temporomandibular disorders. However, it is unclear whether one of them could be superior to the other.
objectivesThe aim of the present systematic review and network meta-analysis was to compare the effectiveness of manual therapy and dry needling in patients with myofascial TMD.
methodsThis is a systematic review and network meta-analysis. Randomized clinical trials were searched in the databases of Pubmed, PEDro, CINAHL, Web of Science, Scopus, Cochrane, Google Academic and EMBASE. The methodological quality of studies included in this review was judged using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) scale. A frequentist network meta-analysis was carried out, assuming random effects, to estimate the effects of interventions for temporomandibular joint pain measured on a 10-point visual analogue scale.
resultsOut of 3190 records identified, 17 met the inclusion criteria for qualitative analysis and eight were included in the network meta-analysis. Indirect comparisons between dry needling and manual therapy showed no significant differences in their effects on pain reduction (Odds Ratio [95%CI]; - 0.263 [- 1.517, 0.992]). The ranking of treatments shows that manual therapy (SUCRA = 0.932) followed by deep dry needling (SUCRA = 0.775) present the highest values of estimation and can be considered the most likely to reduce pain.
conclusionsThe results of the network meta-analysis should be considered with caution due to the low quality of the evidence available and the high variability of the study protocols in terms of the method of application of dry needling and manual therapy interventions. PROSPERO under identifier: (CRD42020186470).
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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.