# Efficacy and safety of the thumbtack needle for neck pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis

## TL;DR

This study reviews the effectiveness and safety of thumbtack needle therapy for neck pain, finding it significantly reduces pain and improves mobility.

## Contribution

A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials on thumbtack needle therapy for neck pain, revealing its clinical efficacy and highlighting gaps in safety data.

## Key findings

- Thumbtack needle therapy significantly reduced pain scores (VAS) and disability (NDI) in patients with neck pain.
- The treatment showed a higher total effective rate compared to control groups.
- Safety data was limited due to lack of adverse event reporting in included studies.

## Abstract

Neck pain (NP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that significantly affects the physical function and quality of life of patients. Thumbtack needle therapy is widely used to manage NP. However, previous studies have reported inconsistent clinical outcomes. This study aims to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of thumbtack needle therapy for NP.

A systematic search was conducted in the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, Embase, PubMed, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), China Science and Technology Journal (VIP), and Wanfang databases from their inception to 24 September 2023 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on thumbtack needle therapy for NP. Outcome measures included the visual analog scale (VAS) scores, neck disability index (NDI) scores, total effective rate, and adverse events. A meta-analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.3. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) system.

Seven RCTs involving 425 patients were included. Compared with the control group, thumbtack needle therapy significantly reduced VAS scores (MD = −1.33, 95% confidence interval (CI): −1.63, −1.03; Z = 8.65; P < 0.05), reduced NDI scores (MD = −5.54, 95% CI: −9.73, −1.35; Z = 2.59; P < 0.05), and improved the total effective rate (OR = 0.27, 95% CI: 0.10, 0.70; Z = 2.67; P < 0.05). Adverse events were not reported in several studies, limiting conclusions on safety. A subgroup analysis revealed that heterogeneity may be related to the variation in combination therapies and treatment course. A sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of the results. The overall quality of evidence ranged from very low to moderate.

This study found that thumbtack needle therapy can effectively relieve pain and improve cervical mobility in patients with NP. The reduction in VAS scores reached the level of the minimum clinically important difference, indicating that thumbtack needle treatment for neck pain has a clinically significant impact. In the future, high-quality RCTs are needed to further validate the clinical efficacy of thumbtack needle therapy for NP.

https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD42025632076, PROSPERO CRD42025632076.