The systematic review of students and faculty in the Department of Occupational Therapy (OT) on Dry Needling in OT Practice was featured in February 2021 by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).
Led and mentored by OT faculty Drs. Claudia Hilton and April Cowan, students Rachel Bynum, Olivia Garcia, Emily Herbst, Mary Kossa and Katrina Liou completed the the systematic review as part of the requirements for their research courses. It was later
published in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy and then used to make the determination of the appropriateness of including dry needling as an occupational therapy intervention.
Comparable to acupuncture, Dry Needling is an emerging intervention practice of deep insertion of needles into the muscles to reduce and treat myofascial pain, increase range of motion and improve musculoskeletal function of various body
areas that include the back, neck and lower/upper extremities.
In a typical dry needling session, these thin needles are inserted into trigger points of targeted muscles and connective tissues with the aim of remediating muscle function and improving activity and participation (American Physical Therapy Association,
2013).
For further reading, please read: Effects of Dry Needling on Spasticity and Range of Motion