Evaluation of the Effect of Acupuncture on Objective Outcomes in Patients With Chronic Neck Discomfort

June 26, 2026 updated by: Hsuan-Shu Shen, Hualien Tzu Chi General Hospital

Evaluation of the Effect of Acupuncture on 3 Dimensional Scapular Kinematics and Electromyographic Activity in Patients With Chronic Neck Discomfort

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine whether acupuncture can improve neck pain and shoulder movement in people with chronic neck pain. Researchers will compare acupuncture with sham acupuncture (a procedure designed to resemble acupuncture without therapeutic effects) to determine whether acupuncture provides specific benefits.

Participants will be randomly assigned to receive either acupuncture or sham acupuncture. They will attend 1 treatment session and undergo assessments of neck and shoulder movement, muscle activity, pain intensity, and neck-related disability before and after treatment. Researchers will also monitor any adverse events associated with treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether acupuncture can improve neck and shoulder function in patients with chronic neck pain. It will also evaluate the effects of acupuncture on scapular movement, muscle activity, pain intensity, and neck-related disability.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does acupuncture improve muscle activation onset time in patients with chronic neck pain? Does acupuncture change electromyographic activity of the neck and shoulder muscles? Does acupuncture reduce pain intensity and neck-related disability?

Researchers will compare real acupuncture with sham acupuncture to determine whether the observed effects are specifically related to acupuncture treatment.

Participants will:

Be randomly assigned to receive either real acupuncture or sham acupuncture Receive one treatment session over the study intervention period.

Undergo assessments of muscle activation onset time and electromyographic activity before and after treatment

Complete questionnaires evaluating pain intensity, neck disability, and related symptoms Attend follow-up assessments and report any adverse events during the study period.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

50

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
    • Hualien
      • Hualien City, Hualien, Taiwan, 970
        • Hualien Tzu Chi Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • age between 18 and 65 years;
  • presence of neck discomfort for at least 3 months; and
  • baseline neck disability index(NDI) score between 5 and 24, indicating mild to moderate disability, and baseline Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) score between 1 and 6 for pain intensity.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • scored >24 on the NDI, indicating severe disability;
  • had a history of neck, shoulder, or upper limb surgery or major trauma;
  • had restricted shoulder joint ROM, joint instability, or shoulder pain during movement;
  • had taken analgesics, muscle relaxants, anti-inflammatory agents, or traditional Chinese or Western medicine 3 days prior to study initiation;
  • had received acupuncture, massage, cupping, or other manual therapies within 1 week prior to the intervention; and/or
  • were pregnant.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Acupuncture
Participants in this group receive standardized acupuncture treatment administered by licensed acupuncturists. Sterile disposable needles are inserted at predefined acupuncture points according to the study protocol. one session of acupuncture treatment are delivered over the intervention period,
Other: Acupuncture
Participants receive standardized acupuncture treatment administered by licensed acupuncturists. Disposable sterile needles are inserted at predefined acupuncture points selected for chronic neck pain management. Manual needle stimulation is applied to elicit deqi sensation, and needles are retained for approximately 20-30 minutes per session. Treatments are delivered according to a standardized protocol throughout the study period.
Sham Comparator: Sham Acupuncture
Participants in this group receive sham acupuncture designed to mimic the acupuncture procedure without providing specific therapeutic stimulation. The sham intervention is administered according to a standardized protocol and follows the same treatment schedule as the acupuncture group.
Other: Sham Acupuncture
Participants receive sham acupuncture using non-penetrating placebo needles that simulate needle insertion without skin penetration. The sham procedure is performed at predefined non-acupuncture locations and follows the same treatment frequency, duration, and clinical procedures as the acupuncture group. The intervention is designed to maintain participant blinding while minimizing specific physiological effects associated with acupuncture.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Objective outcome (Range of Motion of the Cervical and Shoulder Joints)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period.

The primary outcome variables were the ROM of the cervical and shoulder joints, muscle tension, and muscle activation onset time measured using surface electromyography (sEMG).

1. Range of Motion (ROM) of the Cervical and Shoulder Joints Cervical ROM (flexion, extension, and bilateral side-bending) and shoulder ROM (flexion, external rotation and internal rotation on the affected side) were measured using a standard universal goniometer.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period.
Objective outcome (Muscle Tension Measurement)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period.
2. Muscle Tension Measurement Passive mechanical properties of the muscles (upper trapezius [UT], lower trapezius [LT], and middle deltoid [MiD]) were evaluated using a handheld digital myotonometer (MyotonPRO, Myoton AS, Tallinn, Estonia).
Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period.
Objective outcome (Muscle Activation Onset Time)
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period
Muscle activation onset time of the upper trapezius [UT], lower trapezius [LT], and middle deltoid [MiD], and serratus anterior (SA) during shoulder scaption was evaluated via Surface Electromyography (sEMG) (Noraxon USA Inc, Scottsdale, AZ). All procedures followed the sEMG for the Non-Invasive Assessment of Muscles recommendations.
Baseline and immediately after completion of the intervention period

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Subjective Outcomes (Numerical Rating Scale)
Time Frame: The participants completed the Numerical Rating Scale at baseline and on days 7 and 14 post-intervention.
We used self-reported Numerical Rating Scale scores (from 0 to 10)to assess pain intensity of neck before and after treatment.
The participants completed the Numerical Rating Scale at baseline and on days 7 and 14 post-intervention.
Subjective Outcomes (Neck Disability Index)
Time Frame: The participants completed the Neck Disability Index questionnaire at baseline and on days 7 and 14 post-intervention.
We used self-reported Neck Disability Index scores to assess neck disability before and after treatment
The participants completed the Neck Disability Index questionnaire at baseline and on days 7 and 14 post-intervention.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Hualien Tzu Chi General Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

August 21, 2020

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 31, 2020

Study Completion (Actual)

January 15, 2021

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 19, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 26, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

July 2, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 2, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 26, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • TCRD109-4

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data (IPD) will not be shared because the informed consent obtained from participants did not include permission for public sharing of de-identified individual-level data. Data containing potentially identifiable information will be retained by the study investigators and institution in accordance with applicable regulations and ethical requirements.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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