ArticleFrontiers in pediatrics2026
Adjunctive dry needling reduces spasticity and improves functional outcomes in children with cerebral palsy: a single-blind randomized controlled trial.
Article in Frontiers in pediatrics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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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.
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8 authors.
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Abstract
Background: Spastic cerebral palsy is the most prevalent motor disability in childhood, and the alleviation of spasticity has been a primary rehabilitation objective with the view of improving the outcomes of functional recovery. Dry needling (DN) has demonstrated some efficacy in adult neurology, but controlled evidence is limited in children. This study tested the hypothesis that incorporating DN into traditional physical therapy is effective in improving spasticity, gross motor functions, and functional mobility in ambulant children with spastic cerebral palsy. Methods: Forty-eight children with spastic diplegia cerebral palsy, ages 6-12 years, were randomly allocated to either a DN group (DN plus traditional therapy) or a traditional rehabilitation (TR) group (traditional therapy alone). Interventions lasted 12 weeks. Outcome measures included the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS), Gross Motor Function Measure (GMFM-88; dimensions D and E), and Timed Up and Go (TUG) test. Results: MANOVA analyses showed that both groups significantly improved across all outcomes ( Conclusion: Dry needling in combination with traditional physical therapy was associated with greater improvements in spasticity, motor function, and mobility than traditional therapy alone. DN was tolerable and could be a safe and effective additional intervention for ambulatory children with mild-to-moderate spastic cerebral palsy.
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