Does dry needling aid in post-training recovery? A critically appraised topic

Clinical scenario

Following intense physical training, it is common for athletes to develop muscle soreness, muscle tightness and a sense of fatigue. Minimizing the time spent in this state is advantageous to limit time off from sport, potential injury and lack of mental focus.

Clinical question

Does dry needling aid in post-training recovery in athletes?

Summary of key findings

A search was performed for articles exploring the effect of dry needling on exercise/training recovery in athletes. Six articles were included in this critically appraised topic. Three articles were randomized controlled trials, one was a cross-over design, one was a case series, and one was a survey. Five of the six studies demonstrated that dry needling had some sort of positive effect on post-training recovery. One article found DN did not improve muscle soreness after a long distance race.

Clinical bottom line

Based on six studies, DN provides mixed results on a variety of physiological and subjective measures. No adverse effects were reported with the use of DN on athletes following post-training.

Strength of recommendation

In agreement with the Center of Evidence-Based Medicine, the consistent results from three Level II and two Level III intervention studies designate that there is grade D evidence that DN may aid in some post-training recovery variables.