Purpose: to investigate the effect of HILT on pain intensity in patients with acute cervical MTrP in the upper trapezius muscle.
methods: 50 patients (32 female and 18 male) having MTrP in the upper trapezius muscle from out-clinic of faculty of physical therapy BADR university, were participated in this study. Their ages ranged from 20 to 40 years old with body mass index less than 25 kg/m² They were assigned randomly into two equal groups; group (A) received traditional treatment only (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), ultrasound massage (US) and stretch and exercise) , group B received HILT with traditional treatment. duration of treatment was 2 sessions/week for 4 weeks. Measurement of the visual analogue scale (VAS) was recorded before and at the end of intervention.
Results: Results showed that there was significant difference between the two groups in the outcome measures in the post treatment assessment, but the HILT group (group B) showed a significant improvement than the control group (group A) at (p >0.001).
Conclusion: HILT is an adjuvant physical therapy modality that may provide better outcomes for a patient with cervical MTrP.