OBJECTIVE: To compare the short- and intermediate-term effects of dry needling to manual therapy on pain, disability, function, and patient-perceived improvement in patients with mechanical neck pain. DESIGN: A single (therapist) blinded randomized controlled trial. METHODS: Seventy-eight patients (mean +/- SD age, 50.74 +/- 13.81) were randomly assigned to one of the 2 groups: (1) dry needling and therapeutic exercises (DN plus Exercises) and (2) manual therapy and therapeutic exercises (MT plus Exercises). Both groups received 7 treatment sessions over a maximum of 6 weeks. Outcome measures, collected at baseline, 2 weeks, discharge (7th treatment session), and 3 months after discharge, were as follows: Neck Disability Index (NDI), numeric pain-rating scale (NPRS), Patient-Specific Functional Scale (PSFS), global rating of change (GROC), Fear-Avoidance Belief Questionnaire (FABQ), and Deep Neck Flexor Endurance Test (DNFET). Data were analyzed with mixed-model analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), using pretest scores as covariates, and a Mann-Whitney U test for GROC scores. RESULTS: The ANCOVA revealed significant group-by-time interaction for all variables. Significant between-group differences, favoring MT plus Exercises, were observed at all 3 time points on the NDI (2 weeks: F1,446 = 172.68, p <= 0.001, (Formula: see text) = 0.27; discharge: F1,446 = 254.15, p <= 0.001, (Formula: see text) = 0.36; and 3 months: F1,446 = 339.40, p <= 0.001, (Formula: see text) = 0.43). Results for the MT plus Exercises group exceeded recommended minimal clinically important difference for all variables, at all follow-up points. CONCLUSION: MT plus Exercises was more effective, both in the short term and intermediate term, than DN plus Exercises in reducing pain, disability, and improving function in patients with mechanical neck pain.

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