Effects of Heat-Conduction Dry Needling on Pain and Physical Function in Early-to-Mid-Stage Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial with 12-Month Follow-Up
- 1Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Ningxia Medical University General Hospital, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, People’s Republic of China
- 2Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Ningxia Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital, Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, People’s Republic of China
Abstract
Purpose: To compare the 12-month effects of heat-conduction dry needling (HCDN) and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) on pain and physical function in early-to-mid-stage knee osteoarthritis (KOA).
Patients and Methods: In this single-center, parallel-group randomized clinical trial, 47 participants were allocated to HCDN (n=24) or TENS (n=23) for 4 weeks. Primary outcomes were WOMAC total and subscale scores; numerical rating scale (NRS) pain was prespecified. Secondary outcomes were 30-second Chair Stand Test, safety, and exploratory MRI cartilage volume. Seven participants had baseline data only. Fifty multiply imputed datasets were generated by chained equations with predictive mean matching. Linear mixed-effects models included group, categorical time, and group-by-time fixed effects and a participant-specific random intercept; estimates were pooled by Rubin’s rules.
Results: Group-by-time interactions were significant for NRS pain (pooled Wald χ2[4]=13.48, P=0.009), WOMAC pain (χ2[4]=46.97, P<0.001), WOMAC total (χ2[4]=46.68, P<0.001), and WOMAC activities of daily living (χ2[4]=40.41, P<0.001). At 12 months, HCDN–TENS differences were −1.58 points for NRS pain (95% CI −2.36 to −0.79; Holm-adjusted P<0.001) and −3.70 points for WOMAC pain (95% CI −5.01 to −2.38; Holm-adjusted P<0.001). A ≥50% NRS reduction occurred in 69.8% of HCDN and 27.3% of TENS participants (risk ratio 2.58, 95% CI 1.17–5.65). No serious adverse events occurred.
Conclusion: HCDN was associated with more sustained reductions in pain and improvements in patient-reported function than TENS. Larger multicenter trials with sham or usual-care comparators are required.
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BibTeX
@article{lian2026effects,
title = {{Effects of Heat-Conduction Dry Needling on Pain and Physical Function in Early-to-Mid-Stage Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial with 12-Month Follow-Up}},
author = {Jiawei Lian and Weidong Jin and Shiqiang Zhu and Menglai Hao and Yindi Bai and Bojun Wen and Furong Liu and Xinyi Wang and Jinchen Zhang and Ruizhu Lin and Jianfeng Xu},
journal = {Journal of Pain Research},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.2147/jpr.s630783},
url = {https://doi.org/10.2147/jpr.s630783},
note = {CC BY-NC 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Effects of Heat-Conduction Dry Needling on Pain and Physical Function in Early-to-Mid-Stage Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Controlled Trial with 12-Month Follow-Up
AU - Jiawei Lian
AU - Weidong Jin
AU - Shiqiang Zhu
AU - Menglai Hao
AU - Yindi Bai
AU - Bojun Wen
AU - Furong Liu
AU - Xinyi Wang
AU - Jinchen Zhang
AU - Ruizhu Lin
AU - Jianfeng Xu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/30
JO - Journal of Pain Research
DO - 10.2147/jpr.s630783
UR - https://doi.org/10.2147/jpr.s630783
AB - Purpose: To compare the 12-month effects of heat-conduction dry needling (HCDN) and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) on pain and physical function in early-to-mid-stage knee osteoarthritis (KOA). Patients and Methods: In this single-center, parallel-group randomized clinical trial, 47 participants were allocated to HCDN (n=24) or TENS (n=23) for 4 weeks. Primary outcomes were WOMAC total and subscale scores; numerical rating scale (NRS) pain was prespecified. Secondary outcomes were 30-second Chair Stand Test, safety, and exploratory MRI cartilage volume. Seven participants had baseline data only. Fifty multiply imputed datasets were generated by chained equations with predictive mean matching. Linear mixed-effects models included group, categorical time, and group-by-time fixed effects and a participant-specific random intercept; estimates were pooled by Rubin’s rules. Results: Group-by-time interactions were significant for NRS pain (pooled Wald χ2[4]=13.48, P=0.009), WOMAC pain (χ2[4]=46.97, P<0.001), WOMAC total (χ2[4]=46.68, P<0.001), and WOMAC activities of daily living (χ2[4]=40.41, P<0.001). At 12 months, HCDN–TENS differences were −1.58 points for NRS pain (95% CI −2.36 to −0.79; Holm-adjusted P<0.001) and −3.70 points for WOMAC pain (95% CI −5.01 to −2.38; Holm-adjusted P<0.001). A ≥50% NRS reduction occurred in 69.8% of HCDN and 27.3% of TENS participants (risk ratio 2.58, 95% CI 1.17–5.65). No serious adverse events occurred. Conclusion: HCDN was associated with more sustained reductions in pain and improvements in patient-reported function than TENS. Larger multicenter trials with sham or usual-care comparators are required.
SN - 1178-7090
ER -