Needles, cups, or pressure: which technique best eases stubborn neck pain?

NCT ID NCT07711041

Symptom relief Sponsor: Beni-Suef University Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

First seen Jul 17, 2026 · Last updated Jul 17, 2026

Summary

This study compares three manual therapies—dry needling, dry cupping, and a technique called integrated neuromuscular inhibition—added to standard exercises for people with chronic mechanical neck pain lasting over six months. Eighty participants will receive one of the four treatments over four weeks, with researchers measuring pain intensity, pressure sensitivity, and daily function. The goal is to find which approach offers the most relief for this common condition.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance: dry needling, dry cupping, and integrated neuromuscular inhibition technique (INIT) plus traditional physical therapy
What this could lead to: If one technique proves clearly better, it could become a go-to treatment for chronic neck pain, reducing reliance on medication.
What could go wrong: This is a small, short-term trial (80 people, 4 weeks) comparing multiple approaches, so results may not apply broadly or show lasting benefits.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 80 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Expected to start

Jul 2026

An estimate. Start dates often move.

Expected to finish

May 2027

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 to 40 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Medically competent men and women will be included They had chronic MTrPs in the upper trapezius for more than 6 months Diagnostic criteria of being a tight band with a palpable nodule and distant pain when subjected to pressure Exclusion Criteria: * subjects with previous neck or shoulder pathology (e.g., fracture, sur¬gery, inflammatory and infectious diseases), cervical disc pathology, systemic disorder, fibromyalgia, those who underwent physical therapy for at least the previous 3 months

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As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Dry cupping technique Dry needling technique Mechanical neck pain

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

The places running it

1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
The official record

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Needles, cups, or pressure: which technique best eases stubborn neck pain?

What the study statuses mean