Panorama da produção científica mundial sobre dor miofascial de 1945 a 2021 um estudo bibliométrico

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FLÁVIA HASSE 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
PANORAMA DA PRODUÇÃO CIENTÍFICA MUNDIAL 
SOBRE DOR MIOFASCIAL DE 1945 A 2021: UM ESTUDO 
BIBLIOMÉTRICO 
 
 
Trabalho apresentado à Universidade Federal 
de Santa Catarina, como requisito para a 
conclusão do Curso de Graduação em 
Medicina. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Florianópolis 
Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina 
2021 
 
 
 
FLÁVIA HASSE 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
PANORAMA DA PRODUÇÃO CIENTÍFICA MUNDIAL 
SOBRE DOR MIOFASCIAL DE 1945 A 2021: UM ESTUDO 
BIBLIOMÉTRICO 
 
 
Trabalho apresentado à Universidade Federal 
de Santa Catarina, como requisito para a 
conclusão do Curso de Graduação em 
Medicina. 
 
 
 
Presidente do Colegiado: Prof. Dr. Edevard José de Araújo 
Orientador: Dr. João Eduardo Marten Teixeira 
Co-orientadores: Prof. Dr. Ari Digiácomo Ocampo Moré e Dr. Ari Ojeda 
Ocampo Moré 
 
 
 
 
Florianópolis 
Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina 
2021 
 
 
 
Artigo Original 
 
Flávia Hasse¹ 
João Eduardo Marten Teixeira² 
 
Panorama da produção científica mundial sobre dor miofascial de 1945 a 
2021: Um estudo bibliométrico 
 
Overview of world scientific production on myofascial pain from 1945 to 2021: A 
bibliometric study 
 
 
Trabalho apresentado à Universidade Federal de 
Santa Catarina, como requisito para a conclusão 
do Curso de Graduação em Medicina. 
 
 ¹Acadêmica do curso de medicina da 
Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, 
Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brasil. ²Médico, 
Acupuntura, Unidade de Clínica Médica, Divisão 
de Gestão do Cuidado, Gerência de Atenção à 
Saúde, Hospital Universitário da Universidade 
Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Santa 
Catarina, Brasil. ¹Endereço eletrônico: 
flaviahasse17@gmail.com; Endereço para 
correspondência: Rua Luiz Oscar de Carvalho, 
149, bloco E, apto 305 - Trindade, 
Florianópolis/SC, Brasil. Telefone +55 47 
988124110; ²Endereço eletrônico: 
joao.marten@ebserh.gov.br 
 
 
 
Florianópolis 2021 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
v 
 
 
 
RESUMO 
 
Objetivo: Descrever o perfil da atividade de publicações na área a dor miofascial, seu impacto 
científico no mundo e as tendencias globais de publicações nessa área ao longo do tempo. 
Métodos: A versão online da base de dados Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-E) foi 
utilizada para coleta dos dados deste estudo e cobriu o período de Jan/1945 a Out/2021, que 
posteriormente foi subdivido em 7 perídos ou décadas. Os filtros título e tópico foram usados 
na pesquisa de documentos. Os recortes analisados incluíram número total de publicações, 
número total de citações, número de documentos publicados por ano, número de documentos 
citados por ano, publicações originadas de instituições, artigos mais citados, tipos de 
documento, áreas de pesquisa, local de publicação, periódicos e o h-index de autores. 
Resultados: Foi encontrado um total de 2756 publicações nos últimos 76 anos. O número 
médio de citações por documento foi de 12,6 e a média de publicações por ano foi de 36,3. Os 
EUA foram o país com maior número de publicações (n=895), seguido de Espanha (n=328) e 
Turquia (n=175). A instituição com maior número de publicações foi a Universidade Rey Juan 
Carlos (n=157) e a mais citada foi o Sistema Universitário da Califórnia (n=415). Reabilitação 
foi a área de pesquisa com mais trabalhos relacionados ao tema, 641 (23,3% do total), e a revista 
Journal Of Musculoskeletal Pain a que mais publicou (n=119). A publicação com maior 
número de citações (n=414) foi o “Lidocaine injection versus dry needling to myofascial trigger 
point: the importance of the local twitch response”, cujo primeiro autor é Hong C-Z (h-
index=31). 
Conclusão: Um número considerável de publicações foi encontrado, sendo que a tendência foi 
de aumento progressivo ao longo dos anos, em especial a partir de 2006, quando se observou 
incremento significativo no número de publicações e de citações relativas à área da dor 
miofascial. A revista Journal of Musculoskeletal Pain teve maior número de publicações, sendo 
Reabilitação a área de pesquisa com mais trabalhos publicados. Foram os EUA o país que mais 
publicou sobre o tema, seguido de Espanha e Turquia; Ao longo do tempo, a instituição 
espanhola, Universidade Rey Juan Carlos, teve o maior número de publicações e a americana, 
Sistema Universitário da Califórnia, mais citações. Por fim, a publicação com maior número de 
citações, desde 1945, foi a “Lidocaine injection versus dry needling to myofascial trigger point: 
the importance of the local twitch response”, cujo primeiro autor é Hong C-Z (h-index=31). 
Palavras-chave: Bibliometria, Síndromes da Dor Miofascial, Pontos-Gatilho 
 
 
vi 
 
 
 
ABSTRACT 
 
Objective: Describe the activity profile of scientific publications on myofascial pain, its global 
scientific impact and trends in publications in this area over time. 
Methods: The online version of the Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-E) database was 
used to collect data from this study and covered the period from Jan/1945 to Oct/2021. The title 
and topic filters were used in document search. The cutouts included total number of 
publications, total number of citations, number of published documents per year, number of 
documents cited per year, publications originating from institutions, most cited articles, types 
of documents, research areas, place of publication, journals and the h-index of authors. 
Results: A total of 2,756 pubications were found in the last 76 years. The average number of 
citations per document was 12.6 and the average number of publications per year was 36.3. The 
USA was the country with the highest number of publications (n=895), followed by Spain 
(n=328) and Turkey (n=175). The institution with the highest number of publications was the 
Rey Juan Carlos University (n=157) and the most cited was the University of California System 
(n=415). Rehabilitation was the research area with the most related studies, 641 (23.3% of the 
total), and the journal Journal of Musculoskeletal Pain the one that most published (n=119). 
The paper with the highest number of citations (n=414) was "Lidocaine injection versus dry 
needling to myofascial trigger point: the Importance of the Local Twitch Response", whose first 
author is Hong C-Z (h-index=31). 
Conclusion: A considerable number of publications were found, and the trend was progressive 
increase over the years, especially since 2006, when there was a significant increase in the 
number of publications and citations related to the area of myofascial pain. The journal Journal 
of Musculoskeletal Pain had a higher number of publications, rehabilitation being the research 
area with more published studies. USA was the country that published the most on the subject, 
followed by Spain and Turkey; Over time, the Spanish institution, Rey Juan Carlos University, 
was the one with the highest number of publications and the American, University of California 
System, the most cited. Finally, the publication with the highest number of citations since 1945 
was the "Lidocaine injection versus dry needling to myofascial trigger point: the importance of 
the local twitch response", whose first author is Hong C-Z (h-index=31). 
Keywords: Bibliometrics, Myofascial Pain Syndromes, Trigger Points 
 
 
 
vii 
 
 
 
LISTA DE SIGLAS E ABREVIATURAS 
 
 
EUA Estados Unidos da América 
MTrP Myofascial Trigger Point 
NIH National Institutes of Health 
NSFC National Natural Science Foundation Of China 
PGMs Pontos-gatilho Miofasciais 
SCI-E Science Citation Index Expanded 
SDM Síndrome Dolorosa Miofascial 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
viii 
 
 
 
SUMÁRIO 
 
 
RESUMO.....................................................................................................................vABSTRACT.................................................................................................................vi 
 
1 INTRODUÇÃO...............................................................................................1 
2 OBJETIVOS....................................................................................................3 
2.1 GERAL.............................................................................................................3 
2.2 ESPECÍFICOS..................................................................................................3 
3 MÉTODO .......................................................................................................4 
4 RESULTADOS...............................................................................................6 
5 DISCUSSÃO..................................................................................................12 
6 CONCLUSÃO...............................................................................................15 
 
REFERÊNCIAS........................................................................................................16 
NORMAS ADOTADAS...........................................................................................18 
ANEXO......................................................................................................................19 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1 
 
 
 
1 INTRODUÇÃO 
 
 
A Síndrome Dolorosa Miofascial (SDM) é uma condição altamente prevalente e 
relevante, tanto pela sua presença nos mais diversos contextos médicos, quanto por sua 
apresentação irrestrita a faixa etária, sexo ou etnia.1–4 Essa condição é frequentemente 
negligenciada no contexto da medicina, e o baixo custo econômico associado ao seu diagnóstico 
e à sua abordagem terapêutica é um fator que corrobora para sua importância.1 Ainda existem 
obstáculos que impossibilitam quantificar com exatidão a real prevalência em populações, 
dentre eles a inexistência, até o momento, de critérios diagnósticos amplamente adotados e a 
variabilidade de experiência dos profissionais na identificação de padrões dessa síndrome.5 
Devido sua fisiopatologia, implicações sociais e emocionais, diversas condições primárias, 
como fibromialgia e osteoartrite, correlacionam-se com o aparecimento de pontos-gatilho 
miofasciais levando a um quadro de SDM.3,6,7 Sendo, portanto, fundamental conhecê-las no 
momento da abordagem do paciente com quaisquer condições dolorosas agudas ou crônicas.1 
Essa síndrome costuma ser definida como uma dor regional desencadeada por pontos-
gatilho miofasciais (PGMs) localizados em bandas musculares tensas, acometendo tanto a 
musculatura esquelética quanto a fáscia.8 Esta concepção foi desenvolvida graças aos estudos 
aprofundados da Dra Janet Travell, principal nome da área, e de seu colega, Dr David Simons, 
sendo até aquele momento chamada de diversas formas, dentre elas “tumor nodular muscular”, 
“calo muscular” e “fibrosite”.8 
Quando pressionados, os PGMs mimetizam a dor relatada pelo paciente. Essa 
experiência de dor pode ser local ou referida, isto é, ela não se limita à banda muscular ou 
respeita dermátomos.9 Os PGMs podem ser ativos, causando dor espontaneamente, ou latentes, 
dolorosos apenas quando palpados. É possível detectá-los durante a consulta médica, tornando 
fundamental que tanto a anamnese quanto o exame físico contemplem essa abordagem, uma 
vez que exames complementares são desnecessários para o diagnóstico dessa síndrome.8,9 Seu 
tratamento consiste em primeiramente manejar os pontos-gatilho, seja através de técnicas de 
agulhamento, eletroestimulação, terapias manuais ou medicamentos injetáveis e orais e, a longo 
prazo, corrigir também seus fatores desencadeantes e perpetuantes.9 
Atualmente o cenário científico e o volume de produção em dor miofascial ainda é 
pouco conhecido pois, apesar de existirem muitas publicações sobre dor de origem 
musculoesquelética – mais de três mil por ano1 – a maioria delas é sobre artralgias, neuralgias, 
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?13q47a
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?coy9sX
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?KIWRCW
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?GMJrYL
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?1Knl5P
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?LEYbzM
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?rGa8Kv
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?HSFnGM
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?WV9Ve4
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?QxcGwq
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?oG8OjI
2 
 
 
 
biomecânica corporal ou dor em miopatias, sendo efetivamente poucas sobre mialgia a partir 
de pontos-gatilho miofasciais.1 Sabendo disso e levando em conta questões epidemiológicas 
mundiais, fica cada vez mais clara a importância de haver mais conhecimento sobre a dor 
miofascial no contexto da pesquisa científica.10 
Desse modo, um estudo bibliométrico visa analisar a produção científica dos mais 
diversos temas em áreas distintas, sendo possível por meio dele observar tendências e orientar-
se por caminhos de pesquisa.11 Essa metodologia é pouco explorada no âmbito da SDM, uma 
vez que após revisão bibliográfica pertinente, apenas um estudo com esse foco foi encontrado. 
O estudo de Phan V et al12 teve como objetivo primário investigar a terminologia descritiva 
utilizada nas pesquisas acerca da SDM, além da tendência temporal de publicações e o uso 
dessas terminologias por área de conhecimento médico. Esse mesmo estudo demonstrou que as 
publicações que abordam dor miofascial dobraram a partir de 2010 em comparação com anos 
anteriores.12 Embora esse recorte tenha trazido informações importantes, não foi realizado com 
o intuito bibliométrico de mensurar o impacto da produção científica mundial ou mesmo de 
traçar um panorama mundial de produção científica nessa área.12 
Logo, sabendo que as publicações são um parâmetro relevante da produção científica, 
esse estudo visa descrever o perfil da atividade de publicações na área da dor miofascial, seu 
impacto científico no mundo e as tendencias globais de publicações nessa área ao longo do 
tempo. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?m2MkKm
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?7Plgvs
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?zpl7CK
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?PbeU5s
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?4cwlFu
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?ZP8AMY
3 
 
 
 
2 OBJETIVO 
 
 
2.1 Geral 
Descrever o perfil da atividade de publicações na área da dor miofascial, seu impacto 
científico no mundo, em termos de citação, e as tendências globais de publicações nessa área 
ao longo do tempo. 
 
 2.2 Específicos 
1. Observar a tendência anual do número total de publicações, a partir de 1945. 
2. Elencar as revistas que mais publicaram sobre o tema dor miofascial, bem como as 
áreas de pesquisa com maior número de publicações sobre esse tema. 
3. Reconhecer os países e instituições com maior número de publicações ao longo do 
tempo. 
4. Destacar as publicações mais citadas, ao longo do tempo, e as correlacionar com 
autores e periódicos de publicação. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4 
 
 
 
3 MÉTODO 
 
 
A versão online da base de dados Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-E) foi utilizada 
para coleta dos dados deste estudo e acessada via Web of Science.13 Desenvolvido pelo Institute 
for Scientific Information, o SCI-E é um banco de dados multidisciplinar que contempla 
informações relevantes de pelo menos 9.200 revistas mundialmente importantes, além de 178 
disciplinas científicas.13 Diversos autores utilizam esta base da dados para desenvolver 
trabalhos bibliométricos, buscando conteúdo em diferentes campos.14 
No presente estudo foram utilizadas as seguintes palavras-chave: dry needle, dry 
needling, MTrP, myofascial, myofascial neck pain, myofascial pain, myofascialpain 
syndrome*, myofascial trigger point*, needling therapy, taut band, trigger area, trigger point 
acupuncture, trigger point* e trigger spot no período de Jan/1945 a Out/2021. Este conjunto de 
termos foi escolhido após análise detalhada de revisões sistemáticas sobre dor miofascial a fim 
de delimitar as que mais se relacionavam com o objetivo deste estudo. E o período de início, 
1945, por se tratar do primeiro ano disponibilizado pela base de dados utilizada. 
Para a pesquisa na base de dados foi utilizada a conjunção “ou” entre todos os termos 
acima. Inicialmente utilizaram-se os filtros “tópico” (por ser capaz de localizar dados 
simultaneamente em títulos, abstracts e palavras-chave) e “título”, para verificar qual deles 
apresentava os resultados de acordo com o intuito deste estudo, ou seja, ausência de termos 
confundidores. Após as análises qualitativas das buscas piloto, no entanto, ficou evidente que 
ao utilizar o filtro “tópico” havia publicações que desviavam do foco do estudo, pois abordavam 
condições relacionadas aos tecidos musculares e fasciais, que em nada guardavam relação com 
a síndrome de dor miofascial. Portanto, a fim de atingir o máximo de precisão diante dos termos 
delineados, sem, contudo, prejudicar a análise bibliométrica proposta pelo estudo, optou-se por 
selecionar trabalhos apenas pelo filtro “título”. 
Sendo assim, após realizada a pesquisa e encontrado o número total de publicações, 
foram utilizados mais filtros e ferramentas fornecidos pela plataforma, obtidos através das 
funcionalidades “Analisar resultados” e “Criar relatório de citação”. 
Foram analisados os seguintes recortes para análise bibliométrica: número total de 
publicações, número total de citações, número de documentos publicados por ano, número de 
documentos citados por ano, publicações originadas de instituições, artigos mais citados, tipos 
de documento, áreas de pesquisa, local de publicação, periódicos e o h-index de autores. Este 
índice objetiva quantificar a produção científica e é calculado pela relação do número de 
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?tXhEGZ
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?9BnK2Y
https://www.zotero.org/google-docs/?hSAivW
5 
 
 
 
trabalhos publicados e suas citações, por exemplo, um autor tem h-index=8 se os seus 8 artigos 
mais citados tiverem pelo menos 8 citações cada um. 
 Vale ressaltar que ao analisar as citações de determinado recorte foram excluídas as 
autocitações, a fim de oferecer uma melhor estimativa do impacto científico das publicações na 
área. Estas categorias também foram identificadas utilizando as funcionalidades “Analisar 
resultados” e “Criar relatório de citação”. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6 
 
 
 
4 RESULTADOS 
 
 
Foi encontrado um total de 2756 publicações sobre os termos pesquisados nos últimos 
76 anos (Jan/1945 a Out/2021). Na Figura 1 observa-se o número total de publicações a cada 
ano. Em uma escala global, os Estados Unidos da América (EUA) foram o país que apresentou 
maior produtividade, com 895 publicações (32,5%), seguido por Espanha e Turquia, com 328 
(11,9%) e 175 publicações (6,3%), respectivamente (Tabela 1). Com relação à contagem de 
citações, os EUA se mantiveram no topo com uma média de 5301 citações, aparecendo na 
sequência Alemanha e Inglaterra, com 1092 e 1006 citações de suas publicações. 
 
Figura 1 - Número total de publicações por ano relacionadas a dor miofascial de 1945 a 
2021 
 
Tabela 1. Número de publicações dos 10 países/regiões que mais publicaram ao longo dos 
anos relacionados a dor miofascial 
Ordem Países/Regiões 
Publicações 
1945 a 
1970 
1971 a 
1980 
1981 a 
1990 
1991 a 
2000 
2001 a. 
2010 
2011 a 
2020 2021 Total 
1 EUAa 0 50 109 161 165 365 45 895 
2 Espanha 0 0 0 3 56 232 37 328 
3 Turquia 0 0 0 3 54 105 13 175 
4 Canadá 0 7 12 29 25 60 4 137 
5 Brasil 0 0 0 3 16 100 11 130 
6 Dinamarca 0 1 3 10 39 52 1 106 
7 Alemanhab 0 0 0 6 34 60 4 104 
8 Itália 0 2 1 11 22 60 8 104 
9 China 0 0 0 0 10 79 13 102 
10 Taiwan 0 0 0 13 31 50 2 96 
7 
 
 
 
a
EUA: Estados Unidos da América 
b
Alemanha unificada (pós-Guera fria) 
Em se tratando de tipos de documento, foram 66,3% (n=1825) artigos originais, 12,5% 
(n=345) resumos de eventos científicos, 8,3% (n=230) cartas ao editor, 7,7% (n=211) artigos 
de revisão, 3,4% (n=95) materiais editoriais e 1,9% (n=53) artigos de conferências. Reabilitação 
foi a área de pesquisa com maior número de publicações, sendo 23,3%, seguida de 
Neurociências/Neurologia, Medicina Dentística e Cirurgia Oral e Ciências Esportivas, com 
20,4%, 13,5% e 12,1%, respectivamente (Tabela 2). Já a Tabela 3 mostra as 10 revistas que 
mais publicaram, sendo as três primeiras e suas categorias respectivamente: Journal Of 
Musculoskeletal Pain (Reabilitação e Reumatologia), 119 publicações; Archives Of Physical 
Medicine And Rehabilitation (Reabilitação e Ciências Esportivas), 100; e Pain Medicine 
(Anestesiologia e Medicina Interna), com 73 trabalhos publicados. 
 
Tabela 2. Número de publicações, percentuais e ordem das 10 áreas que mais publicaram sobre 
dor miofascial entre 1945 e 2021 
Ordem Área de Pesquisa Total de publicações, n (%) 
1 Reabilitação 641 (23.3) 
2 Neurociências/Neurologia 562 (20.4) 
3 Medicina Dentística e Cirurgia Oral 372 (13.5) 
4 Ciências Esportivas 334 (12.1) 
5 Anestesiologia 290 (10.5) 
6 Medicina Interna 280 (10.2) 
7 Reumatologia 248 (9.0) 
8 Medicina Integrativa e Complementar 217 (7.9) 
9 Ortopedia 188 (6.8) 
10 Cirurgia 120 (4.3) 
 
Tabela 3. Número total de publicações e ordem das 10 revistas que mais publicaram sobre dor 
miofascial entre 1945 e 2021 e sua área/especialidade 
Ordem Nome da Revista Área/Especialidade 
Nº total de 
publicações 
1 Journal Of Musculoskeletal Pain Reabilitação e Reumatologia 119 
2 
Archives Of Physical Medicine And 
Rehabilitation Reabilitação e Ciências Esportivas 100 
3 Pain Medicine Anestesiologia e Medicina Interna 73 
4 
Journal Of Manipulative And 
Physiological Therapeutics 
Ciência & Serviço da Saúde, Medicina 
Integrativa & Complementar e 
Reabilitação 67 
5 Clinical Journal Of Pain Anestesiologia e Neurologia Clínica 63 
6 
Pain Anestesiologia, Neurologia Clínica e 
Neurociências 55 
8 
 
 
 
7 Journal Of Dental Research Medicina Dentística e Cirurgia Oral 50 
8 
Journal Of The American Dental 
Association Medicina Dentística e Cirurgia Oral 49 
9 
Journal Of Back And 
Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation Ortopedia e Reabilitação 46 
10 Acupuncture In Medicine Medicina Integrativa & Complementar 45 
 
A instituição que mais publicou ao longo dos anos foi a Universidade Rey Juan Carlos, 
com 157 publicações, seguido do Sistema Universitário da Califórnia e da Universidade 
Aalborg, com 82 e 65 trabalhos, respectivamente, e mais adiante da Universidade de São Paulo, 
52, e Universidade Vrije de Amsterdam, 45. Com relação às citações, o Sistema Universitário 
da Califórnia foi citado em 415 ocasiões, seguida das Universidades de Harvard (358), de São 
Paulo (336) e de Vrije (252) (Tabela 4). 
 
Tabela 4. Número total de publicações e ordem das 10 instituições que mais publicaram sobre 
dor miofascial ao longo dos anos e o total de vezes em que estas foram citadas 
Ordem Instituição 
Publicações 
Total 
de 
vezes 
citadas 
1945 a 
1970 
1971 a 
1980 
1981 a 
1990 
1991 a 
2000 
2001 a 
2010 
2011 a 
2020 2021 Total 
1 
Universidade Rey 
Juan Carlos 0 0 0 0 35 105 17 157 182 
2 
Sistema Universitário 
da Califórnia 0 2 25 23 10 19 3 82 415 
3 Universidade Aalborg 0 0 0 0 32 33 0 65 244 
4 
Universidade De São 
Paulo 0 0 0 2 9 37 4 52 337 
5 
Universidade Vrije de 
Amsterdam 0 0 0 0 30 13 2 45 252 
6 Universidade Harvard 0 0 1 5 5 23 3 37 358 
7 
Universidade de 
Toronto 0 0 1 7 3 23 3 37 231 
8 
Universidade 
Complutense de 
Madrid 0 0 0 0 1 28 7 36 65 
9 UniversidadeTufts 0 0 1 9 6 14 6 36 60 
10 
Universidade da 
Califórnia Irvine 0 0 10 17 4 2 0 33 46 
 
 
O autor com maior produtividade foi Fernandez-de-las-penas C (h-index= 57), com 130 
publicações, seguido de Hong CZ (h-index= 31) e Arendt-nielsen L (h-index= 96), com 51 e 45 
9 
 
 
 
publicações, respectivamente. Sendo os três autores mais citados, em ordem decrescente: 
Svensson P (h-index= 22) (163), Arendt-nielsen L (132) e Fernandez-de-las-penas C (127). 
Ainda com relação aos autores mais produtivos, apresentam-se: Ge HY (h-index= 33) e Simons 
DG (h-index= 45), ambos com 32 publicações; Calvo-lobo C (h-index= 15) e Huijing PA (h-
index= 48), 28; Cleland JA (h-index= 50), 27; Raphael KG (h-index= 30), 25 e Fernandez-
carnero J (h-index= 25), com 24 estudos publicados. 
As agências com maior número de financiamentos foram os National Institutes Of 
Health (NIH) e o United States Department Of Health and Human Services, ambas com 89 
publicações, seguidas pela National Natural Science Foundation Of China (NSFC), com 36 
publicações. 
Na Tabela 5 estão elencadas as cinco publicações mais citadas por década, assim como 
a revista onde foram publicadas, o número total de citações que receberam, o nome do primeiro 
autor do estudo e seu respectivo h-index. 
10 
 
 
 
Tabela 5. As 5 publicações relacionadas a dor miofascial mais citadas ao longo dos anos, seu título, a revista em que foram publicadas, seu número 
total de citações, seu primeiro autor e o h-index deste autor 
Tempo Ordem Título da publicação Revista 
Nº total de 
citações 
Primeiro 
autor 
h-index do 
1º autor 
 
1945 a 
1970 
1 Management Of Myofascial Pain Syndromes In General Practice JAMA 70 Bonica JJ 34 
2 Myofascial Pain Syndromes Neurology 47 Sola AE 5 
3 Pneumothorax Following ‘Trigger Point’ Injection JAMA 20 Shafer N 7 
4 Myofascial pain in childhood J Pediatr 16 Bates T 5 
5 
Experimental Alterations In Segmental Sympathetic (Sweat Gland) Activity Through 
Myofascial And Postural Disturbances 
Fed Proc 8 Korr IM 13 
1971 a 
1980 
 
1 Trigger points and acupuncture points for pain: Correlations and implications Pain 305 Melzack R 56 
2 The needle effect in the relief of myofascial pain Pain 197 Lewit K 8 
3 Splint Therapy for the Myofascial Pain-Dysfunction (MPD) Syndrome: a Comparative Study J Am Dent Assoc 179 Greene CS 30 
4 
Dry Needling of Muscle Motor Points for Chronic Low-Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical 
Trial With Long-Term Follow-Up 
Spine 133 Gunn CC 6 
5 
Nocturnal electromyographic evaluation of myofascial pain dysfunction in patients 
undergoing occlusal splint therapy 
J Am Dent Assoc 109 Clark GT 38 
1981 a 
1990 
 
1 
Myofascial pain syndrome of the head and neck: a review of clinical characteristics of 164 
patients 
Oral Surg Oral 
Med Oral Pathol 
259 Fricton JR 22 
2 Reliability of the pressure algometer as a measure of myofascial trigger point sensitivity Pain 256 Reeves JL 15 
3 Prevalence of myofascial pain in general internal medicine practice West J Med 196 Skootsky SA 12 
4 
A Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blind Evaluation of Trigger-Point Injection Therapy for 
Low-Back Pain 
Spine 142 Garvey TA 21 
5 Documentation of myofascial trigger points 
Arch Phys Med 
Rehabil 
118 Fischer AA 12 
1991 a 
2000 
 
1 
Lidocaine injection versus dry needling to myofascial trigger point: The Importance of the 
Local Twitch Response 
Am J Phys Med 
Rehabil 
414 Hong C-Z 31 
2 Interrater reliability in myofascial trigger point examination Pain 410 Gerwin RD 21 
3 Myofascial Trigger Points Show Spontaneous Needle EMG Activity Spine 324 Hubbard DR 8 
11 
 
 
 
4 Pathophysiologic and electrophysiologic mechanisms of myofascial trigger points 
Arch Phys Med 
Rehabil 
263 Hong C-Z 31 
5 
Clinical and pathophysiological observations in migraine and tension-type headache explained 
by integration of vascular, supraspinal and myofascial inputs 
Pain 229 Olesen J 113 
2001 a 
2010 
 
1 
Biochemicals Associated With Pain and Inflammation are Elevated in Sites Near to and 
Remote From Active Myofascial Trigger Points 
Arch Phys Med 
Rehabil 
370 Shah JP 25 
2 Needling therapies in the management of myofascial trigger point pain: A systematic review 
Arch Phys Med 
Rehabil 
249 
Cummings 
TM 
13 
3 Acupuncture and dry-needling for low back pain. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 
Cochrane 
Database Syst Rev 
248 Furlan AD 35 
4 
Acupuncture and Dry-Needling for Low Back Pain: An Updated Systematic Review Within 
the Framework of the Cochrane Collaboration 
Spine 208 Furlan AD 35 
5 Trigger points: diagnosis and management Am Fam Physician 198 Alvarez DJ 2 
2011 a 
2020 
 
1 
An Acute Bout of Self-Myofascial Release Increases Range of Motion Without a Subsequent 
Decrease in Muscle Activation or Force 
J Strength Cond 
Res 
164 
MacDonald 
GZ 
3 
2 
Effectiveness of Dry Needling for Upper-Quarter Myofascial Pain: A Systematic Review and 
Meta-analysis 
J Orthop Sports 
Phys Ther 
150 Kietrys DM 11 
3 
Comparison of the therapeutic effects of ultrasound-guided platelet-rich plasma injection and 
dry needling in rotator cuff disease: a randomized controlled trial 
Clin Rehabil 137 Rha D 18 
4 
Randomized Multicenter Clinical Trial of Myofascial Physical Therapy in Women With 
Interstitial Cystitis/Painful Bladder Syndrome and Pelvic Floor Tenderness 
Journal of Urology 122 
FitzGerald 
MP 
40 
5 Etiology of Myofascial Trigger Points 
Curr Pain 
Headache Rep 
119 Bron C 6 
2021 
 
1 Effect of Varying Self-myofascial Release Duration on Subsequent Athletic Performance 
J Strength Cond 
Res 
14 Phillips J 1 
2 
Botulinum toxin infiltrations versus local anaesthetic infiltrations in pelvic floor myofascial 
pain: Multicentre, randomized, double-blind study 
Ann Phys Rehabil 
Med 
4 Levesque A 4 
3 
The Effect of Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy on Pain Intensity and Neck Disability for 
Patients With Myofascial Pain Syndrome in the Neck and Shoulder: A Meta-Analysis of 
Randomized Controlled Trials 
Am J Phys Med 
Rehabil 
3 Jun JH 4 
4 
Dry Needling Adds No Benefit to the Treatment of Neck Pain: A Sham-Controlled 
Randomized Clinical Trial With 1-Year Follow-up 
J Orthop Sports 
Phys Ther 
3 Gattie E 5 
 5 Assessment of Myofascial Trigger Points via Imaging: A Systematic Review 
Am J Phys Med 
Rehabi 
2 Mazza DF 7 
12 
 
 
 
5 DISCUSSÃO 
 
 
Por meio de pesquisa bibliométrica, este estudo concentrou diversas informações 
relevantes acerca da produção científica mundial sobre dor miofascial dos últimos 76 anos. Os 
EUA, Espanha e Turquia foram os países com maior número total de publicações no período, 
detendo 50,7% do total de publicações. Chama atenção também o aumento generalizado de 
produções científicas a partir da déc. de 2000. 
Entre o ano de 1945 e 1980, a proeminência de autores como Bonica, Melzack, Lewitt 
e Gunn tiveram papel importante no estudo sobre o tratamento da SDM, principalmente através 
de técnicas de acupuntura e agulhamento.15–18 O estudo mais citado do período entre 1981 e 
1990 foi de Fricton et al19, importante pesquisador dentro da área de Cirurgia Odontológica, em 
especial sobre o tema da disfunção temporomandibular. Sua linha de pesquisa guarda relação 
com a introdução da dor miofascial no contexto das diretrizes clínicas acerca desta condição na 
década posterior, além de ter sido fundamental para a construção de materiais para orientação 
profissional e de grande importância acadêmica.20 Como fica evidente no estudo revisional 
sistemático de Fernandez-de-las-penas e Svensson, de 201621, visto que demonstra ser a dor 
miofascial a principal causa de desordem temporomandibular, corroborando com os achados 
de Fricton et al.19 
Ainda nesse sentido, nota-se que no período de 1991 até meados da déc. de 2010 foi 
crescendo o interesse tanto em relação à aspectos de efetividade clínica(ensaios clínicos e 
revisões sistemáticas)23,24 e de diagnóstico25 quanto em relação aos mecanismos 
fisiopatológicos envolvidos na SDM22. Fato este que culminou com o estudo de Shah et al22, de 
2008, terceiro estudo mais citado até hoje, o qual utiliza-se da técnica de microdiálise in vivo 
para a análise bioquímica dos pontos-gatilho miofasciais, ficando evidente o aumento do 
número de publicações na área após sua publicação.22 Tamanha é a importância deste período 
de tempo, que nele estão inseridos não só as três publicações mais citadas até hoje,22,24,25 nos 
parâmetros do presente estudo, como também diversas revisões sistemáticas, dentre elas a de 
Cummings e White23, que trata sobre o assunto em um dos principais periódicos da área de 
Medicina Física e Reabilitação. 
Phan V et al12, assim como o presente estudo, concluíram que até a década de 2000 as 
revistas da área de dor eram as que mais publicavam sobre SDM, e após, passaram a ser as da 
área de Reabilitação, levantando a hipótese de que por isso existiriam estudos insuficientes 
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sobre mecanismos de dor miofascial.12 O que converge com o encontrado aqui, uma vez que o 
estudo de Shah et al22, mesmo abordando mecanismos de dor dentro da SDM, foi publicado na 
revista Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, inserida na especialidade de 
Reabilitação e Ciências Esportivas. 
Com relação ao período de 2011 a 2020, a revisão sistemática de Kietrys et al26, sobre 
agulhamento, vem para firmar esta terapia no contexto do tratamento da SDM, uma vez que se 
apresenta como nível 1 de evidência científica. Tendo isso em vista, é possivel visualizar um 
marco de divisão nas linhas de pesquisa, uma vez que até o ano 2010 estavam mais direcionadas 
a terapias com injeção e agulhamento, e depois dele se relacionavam mais a outras intervenções, 
como autoliberação miofascial, ondas de choque extracorpórea e toxina botulínica, ou seja, 
campos que vem ganhando espaço como possíveis abordagens no âmbito da pesquisa clínica 
em dor miofascial. 
Em se tratando do ranqueamento de instituições e de países, é possível correlacionar 
ambos diretamente com os autores que mais produziram ao longo dos anos. Sendo assim: 
Fernandez-de-las-penas C, autor com maior número de publicações, tem vínculo com a 
Universidade Rey Juan Carlos (Espanha); Hong CZ, segundo em número de publicações, tem 
trabalhos publicados tanto em instituições dos EUA, como o Sistema Universitário da 
Califórnia, quanto de Taiwan; e Arendt-nielsen L, terceiro autor com maior produtividade, tem 
afiliação com a Universidade de Aalborg (Dinamarca). Vale ressaltar ainda a presença do Brasil 
e da Universidade de São Paulo (USP), como 5º país e 4ª instituição, respectivamente, dentre 
os dez com maior número de publicações, sendo os únicos representantes da América Latina 
nesses grupos. 
Como já relatado por Gerwin1, mesmo com o aumento do número de publicações sobre 
dor miofascial nas últimas décadas, ela não recebe a mesma atenção da comunidade científica 
mundial como outras condições, tal qual cefaleia, artralgia e lombalgia. Por isso, segundo ele, 
é chegado o momento da dor miofascial ser tão conhecida quanto estas três outras condições. 
Germwin conclui afirmando que dali em diante era para se esperar um aumento no número de 
publicações na área.1 Fato que se evidenciou no presente estudo, o qual demonstrou aumento 
importante no número de publicações sobre o tema nas últimas duas décadas. 
Teoricamente, os resultados encontrados neste estudo refletem muitos dos principais 
trabalhos sobre dor miofascial em âmbito mundial. Não fossem algumas limitações próprias da 
Base de Dados utilizada no estudo, como o fato de algumas bases de dados primárias regionais 
não estarem indexadas no SCI-E, poderia haver mais registros. É importante relembrar também 
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o período em que a dor miofascial ainda recebia outros nomes, havendo a possibilidade de que 
publicações dessa época tenham sido excluídas desta análise. 
Em síntese, foi encontrado um número considerável de trabalhos sendo que a tendência 
anual do número de publicações aumentou ao longo dos anos, especialmente em meados da 
década de 2010, quando se observa um novo incremento do número de publicações em dor 
miofascial. Os países, instituições e autores que mais produziram guardaram relação entre si, 
demonstrando a importância de se sobrepor os achados bibliométricos e analisá-los como um 
todo. Em suma, ficou evidente que a abordagem do tema dor miofascial foi modificando a cada 
década e que o tema reabilitação teve maior impacto, sendo a revista que mais publicou sobre 
o tema, Journal of Musculoskeletal Pain, pertencente à categoria de Medicina Física e 
Reabilitação. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 
 
 
 
6 CONCLUSÃO 
 
 
Um número considerável de publicações foi encontrado, sendo que a tendência foi de 
aumento progressivo ao longo dos anos, principalmente a partir de 2006, quando se observou 
um incremento mais significativo em número de publicações e em número de citações relativas 
à área da dor miofascial. A revista Journal Of Musculoskeletal Pain foi a com maior número 
de publicações, sendo que Reabilitação foi a área de pesquisa com mais trabalhos publicados. 
Em se tratando de países, os EUA foram o país que mais publicou sobre o tema, seguido de 
Espanha e Turquia; sendo, ao longo do tempo, a instituição espanhola, Universidade Rey Juan 
Carlos, a com maior número de publicações e a americana, Sistema Universitário da Califórnia, 
a mais citada. Por fim, a publicação com maior número de citações, desde 1945, foi a 
“Lidocaine injection versus dry needling to myofascial trigger point: the importance of the 
local twitch response”, cujo primeiro autor é Hong C-Z (h-index=31). 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
16 
 
 
 
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NORMAS ADOTADAS 
 
 
 Este trabalho foi realizado seguindo a normatização para trabalhos de conclusão do 
Curso de Graduação em Medicina, aprovada em reunião do Colegiado do Curso de 
Graduação em Medicina da Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, em 16 de junho de 
2011.19 
 
 
 
ANEXO 
 
 
Formato do manuscrito baseado nas normas para publicação da revista “Acupuncture in 
Medicine”, dispostas a seguir: 
 
Manuscript Submission Guidelines: 
Manuscript Submission Guidelines: Acupuncture in Medicine 
This Journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics 
This Journal recommends that authors follow the Recommendations for the Conduct, 
Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals formulated by the 
International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE). 
Please read the guidelines below then visit the Journal’s submission 
site https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aim to upload your manuscript. Please note that 
manuscripts not conforming to these guidelines may be returned. Remember you can log in to 
the submission site at any time to check on the progress of your paper through the peer review 
process. 
Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the aims and scope of Acupuncture in 
Medicine will be reviewed. 
There are no fees payable to submit or publish in this journal. 
As part of the submission process you will be required to certify that you are submitting your 
original work, that you have the rights in the work, that you are submitting the work for first 
publication in the Journal and that it is not being considered for publication elsewhere and has 
not already been published elsewhere, and that you have obtained and can supply all necessary 
permissions for the reproduction of any copyright works not owned by you. 
1. What do we publish? 
1.1 Aims & Scope 
http://publicationethics.org/
http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf
http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf
https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aim
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#Aims_scope
20 
 
 
 
1.2 Article types 
1.3 Writing your paper 
2. Editorial policies 
2.1 Peer review policy 
2.2 Authorship 
2.3 Acknowledgements 
2.4 Funding 
2.5 Declaration of conflicting interests 
2.6 Research ethics and patient consent 
2.7 Clinical trials 
2.8 Reporting guidelines 
2.9 Data 
3. Publishing polices 
3.1 Publication ethics 
3.2 Contributor’s publishing agreement 
3.3 Open access and author archiving 
4. Preparing your manuscript 
4.1 Formatting 
4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics 
4.3 Supplementary material 
4.4 Reference style 
4.5 English language editing services 
5. Submitting your manuscript 
5.1 ORCID 
5.2 Information required for completing your submission 
5.3 Permissions 
6. On acceptance and publication 
6.1 SAGE Production 
6.2 Online First publication 
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#article_types
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#writing_your_paper
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#ed_pol
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#peer_review_pol
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#author
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#acknow
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#Fund
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#declar_conflict
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#resaerch_ethics
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#clinical_trials
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#reporting_guid
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#data
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#pub_ethics
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#pub_ethics
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#contributor
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#open_access_auth
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#preparing_your_man
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#formatting
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#art
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#supple
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#ref_style
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#English
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#sub_your_man
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#ORCIS
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#Info_required
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#Permissions
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#on_acc_and_pub
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#SAGE_prod
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#online_first
21 
 
 
 
6.3 Access to your published article 
6.4 Promoting your article 
7. Further information 
 
1. What do we publish? 
1.1 Aims & Scope 
Before submitting your manuscript to Acupuncture in Medicine , please ensure you have read 
the Aims & Scope. 
1.2 Article types 
Editorials 
Word count: up to 1000 
Abstract: not required 
Tables/illustrations: up to 2 
References: up to 15 
Original Papers 
Articles will report primary research (clinical trials, prospective observational studies with a 
clear protocal or laboratory science) that is likely to have clinical relevance or make a significant 
scientific advance (as well as systematic reviews) of primary research (usually including meta-
analysis). 
 The journal will consider articles with an emphasis on: 
 Acupuncture (penetration of the body’s surface by one or more needles), which 
encompasses manual acupuncture (MA), electroacupuncture (EA) or a combination of 
both (MA+EA). See Langevin HM, Schnyer R, MacPherson H, et al. Manual and 
electrical needle stimulation in acupuncture research: pitfalls and challenges of 
heterogeneity. J Altern Complement Med 2015; 21(3): 113-128. 
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#access_to_your_pub
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#Promo
https://journals.sagepub.com/author-instructions/AIM#fruther_info
https://www.sagepub.com/acupuncture-in-medicine/journal203547#aims-and-scope
22 
 
 
 
• Reports of related techniques that are non-penetrating (including, but not limited, to 
transcutaneous electrical acupuncture point stimulation (TEAS), moxibustion, 
acupressure and laser acupuncture) may be acceptable in selected circumstances if 
deemed to be of significant clinical or academic interest. 
Original papers should use the following 
headings: INTRODUCTION, METHODS, RESULTS and DISCUSSION in capitalised 
bold font. A maximum of two Subheadings may be used in the Methods, Results and 
Discussion in non-capitalised bold and italic font respectively. The discussion section should 
include a statement of the principal findings, identification of the particular strengths and 
weaknesses of the study, reflection on possible explanations and implications of the research 
for clinical practice and policy-making, recognition of unanswered questions and 
recommendations for future research. Clinical trials, systematic reviews and animal 
experiments should be reported in accordance with the CONSORT, PRISMA and ARRIVE 
guidelines, respectively. 
Word count: up to 4000 words (includes main text, references, acknowledgements and 
figure legends). 
Abstract (structured): up to 250 words 
Tables/illustrations: up to 5 tables/figures 
References: up to 40 
Education and Practice 
These articles are concerned with the provision or practice of acupuncture within a medical or 
allied clinical context. Their aim is to improve the theoretical understanding or practical 
application of acupuncture. Narrative review articles will generally fall into this category. This 
section also includes miscellaneous articles such as those presenting new hypotheses or 
discussing research methodology. Articles should use a conventional scientific approach, as 
those that simply describe traditional theory or practice are not acceptable. Authors should make 
it clear which statements are based on evidence and which constitute opinion. 
Word count: up to 2500 words 
Abstract (structured): up to 250 words23 
 
 
 
Tables/illustrations: 2 
References: up to 25 
Observation 
This section contains substantial reports of patients’ responses to acupuncture, usually in the 
form of a case series or audit, and when clinical data is collected retrospectively. Reports may, 
for example, describe the response to acupuncture among patients with one particular condition, 
or using a particular type of acupuncture. Conclusions, if any, should be cautious because of 
the lack of controls. 
Case series are often descriptions of a group of similar patients identified retrospectively based 
on clinical observation arising in routine practice, rather than addressing a research question. 
Word count: up to 2000 words 
Abstract (structured): up to 250 words 
Tables/Figures: up to 3 
References: up to 20 
Letter 
Letters to the editor are welcome and online access to letters is free. Letters may relate to an 
article in a previous issue, describe a case report that is relevant and of significant interest to 
the research community, or may report a small study. For case reports, you must have signed 
informed consent from patients (or guardians) before submitting to Acupuncture in Medicine. 
Please anonymise the patient’s details as much as possible, e.g., specific ages, ethnicity, 
occupations. 
Word count: up to 700 
Tables/illustrations: up to 2 
References: up to 5 
Review: letters are subject to editorial review 
Obituary 
We welcome obituaries of outstanding members of the BMAS who have contributed 
particularly to the development of Western medical acupuncture, or non-members who are 
24 
 
 
 
internationally renowned for their work in the field, accompanied by a high-resolution colour 
photograph. 
Word count: up to 500 words 
Book and Media Review 
Whilst some book and media reviews are commissioned, the journal welcomes the submission 
of both scientific and fiction reviews. 
For scientific books, reviewers may wish to consider including the following points in their 
review: brief background to the subject matter; comments on the readability, accuracy and 
scope of the contents; the type of reader who would benefit from reading the book (e.g. general 
practitioner, specialist, nurse, trainee, layperson, etc.). 
In the case of fiction books, reviewers should strive to highlight themes in the book that are 
relevant to the journal and professional practitioners. 
Word count: up to 400 words (although longer reviews are occasionally accepted) 
Illustrations/Tables: none 
References: none 
1.3 Writing your paper 
The SAGE Author Gateway has some general advice and on how to get published, plus links 
to further resources. 
1.3.1 Make your article discoverable 
When writing up your paper, think about how you can make it discoverable. The title, keywords 
and abstract are key to ensuring readers find your article through search engines such as Google. 
For information and guidance on how best to title your article, write your abstract and select 
your keywords, have a look at this page on the Gateway: How to Help Readers Find Your 
Article Online 
2. Editorial policies 
2.1 Peer review policy 
https://www.sagepub.com/how-to-get-published
https://www.sagepub.com/help-readers-find-your-article
https://www.sagepub.com/help-readers-find-your-article
25 
 
 
 
SAGE does not permit the use of author-suggested (recommended) reviewers at any stage of 
the submission process, be that through the web-based submission system or other 
communication. 
 
Reviewers should be experts in their fields and should be able to provide an objective 
assessment of the manuscript. Our policy is that reviewers should not be assigned to a paper if: 
• The reviewer is based at the same institution as any of the co-authors 
• The reviewer is based at the funding body of the paper 
• The author has recommended the reviewer 
• The reviewer has provided a personal (e.g. Gmail/Yahoo/Hotmail) email account and an 
institutional email account cannot be found after performing a basic Google search (name, 
department and institution). 
 
2.2 Authorship 
Papers should only be submitted for consideration once consent is given by all contributing 
authors. Those submitting papers should carefully check that all those whose work contributed 
to the paper are acknowledged as contributing authors. 
The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This is all 
those who: 
(i) Made a substantial contribution to the concept or design of the work; or acquisition, 
analysis or interpretation of data, 
(ii) Drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content, 
(iii) Approved the version to be published, 
(iv) Each author should have participated sufficiently in the work to take public 
responsibility for appropriate portions of the content. 
Authors should meet the conditions of all of the points above. When a large, multicentre group 
has conducted the work, the group should identify the individuals who accept direct 
responsibility for the manuscript. These individuals should fully meet the criteria for authorship. 
26 
 
 
 
Acquisition of funding, collection of data, or general supervision of the research group alone 
does not constitute authorship, although all contributors who do not meet the criteria for 
authorship should be listed in the Acknowledgments section. Please refer to the International 
Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) authorship guidelines for more information on 
authorship. 
2.3 Acknowledgements 
All contributors who do not meet the criteria for authorship should be listed in an 
Acknowledgements section. Examples of those who might be acknowledged include a person 
who provided purely technical help, or a department chair who provided only general support. 
Any acknowledgements should appear first at the end of your article prior to your Declaration 
of Conflicting Interests (if applicable), any notes and your References. 
2.3.1 Third party submissions 
Where an individual who is not listed as an author submits a manuscript on behalf of the 
author(s), a statement must be included in the Acknowledgements section of the manuscript 
and in the accompanying cover letter. The statements must: 
• Disclose this type of editorial assistance – including the individual’s name, company and 
level of input 
• Identify any entities that paid for this assistance 
• Confirm that the listed authors have authorized the submission of their manuscript via third 
party and approved any statements or declarations, e.g. conflicting interests, funding, etc. 
Where appropriate, SAGE reserves the right to deny consideration to manuscripts submitted by 
a third party rather than by the authors themselves. 
2.3.2 Writing assistance 
Individuals who provided writing assistance, e.g. from a specialist communications company, 
do not qualify as authors and so should be included in the Acknowledgements section. Authors 
must disclose any writing assistance – including the individual’s name, company and level of 
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/defining-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html
27 
 
 
 
input – and identify the entity that paid for this assistance. It is not necessary to disclose use of 
language polishing services. 
2.4 Funding 
Acupuncture in Medicine requires all authors to acknowledge their funding in a consistent 
fashion under a separate heading. Please visit the Funding Acknowledgements page on the 
SAGE Journal Author Gateway to confirm the format of the acknowledgment text in the event 
of funding, or state that: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in 
the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. 
2.5 Declaration of conflictinginterests 
It is the policy of Acupuncture in Medicine to require a declaration of conflicting interests from 
all authors enabling a statement to be carried within the paginated pages of all published articles. 
Please ensure that a ‘Declaration of Conflicting Interests’ statement is included at the end of 
your manuscript, after any acknowledgements and prior to the references. If no conflict exists, 
please state that ‘The Author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest’. For guidance on 
conflict of interest statements, please see the ICMJE recommendations here. 
2.6 Research ethics and patient consente 
Medical research involving human subjects must be conducted according to the World Medical 
Association Declaration of Helsinki 
Submitted manuscripts should conform to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Conduct, 
Reporting, Editing, and Publication of Scholarly Work in Medical Journals, and all papers 
reporting animal and/or human studies must state in the methods section that the relevant Ethics 
Committee or Institutional Review Board provided (or waived) approval. Please ensure that 
you have provided the full name and institution of the review committee, in addition to the 
approval number. 
For research articles, authors are also required to state in the methods section whether 
participants provided informed consent and whether the consent was written or verbal. 
https://www.sagepub.com/funding-acknowledgements
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/author-responsibilities--conflicts-of-interest.html#two
https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki-ethical-principles-for-medical-research-involving-human-subjects/
https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki-ethical-principles-for-medical-research-involving-human-subjects/
http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf
http://www.icmje.org/icmje-recommendations.pdf
28 
 
 
 
Information on informed consent to report individual cases or case series should be included in 
the manuscript text. A statement is required regarding whether written informed consent for 
patient information and images to be published was provided by the patient(s) or a legally 
authorized representative. 
Please also refer to the ICMJE Recommendations for the Protection of Research Participants 
All research involving animals submitted for publication must be approved by an ethics 
committee with oversight of the facility in which the studies were conducted. The journal has 
adopted the Consensus Author Guidelines on Animal Ethics and Welfare for Veterinary 
Journals published by the International Association of Veterinary Editors. 
2.7 Clinical trials 
Acupuncture in Medicine conforms to the ICMJE requirement that clinical trials are registered 
in a WHO-approved public trials registry at or before the time of first patient enrolment as a 
condition of consideration for publication. The trial registry name and URL, and registration 
number must be included at the end of the abstract.] 
2.8 Reporting guidelines 
The relevant EQUATOR Network reporting guidelines should be followed depending on the 
type of study. For example, all randomized controlled trials submitted for publication should 
include a completed CONSORT flow chart as a cited figure and the completed CONSORT 
checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary file. Systematic reviews 
and meta-analyses should include the completed PRISMA flow chart as a cited figure and the 
completed PRISMA checklist should be uploaded with your submission as a supplementary 
file. The EQUATOR wizard can help you identify the appropriate guideline. 
Other resources can be found at NLM’s Research Reporting Guidelines and Initiatives 
2.9 Data 
SAGE acknowledges the importance of research data availability as an integral part of the 
research and verification process for academic journal articles. 
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/protection-of-research-participants.html
http://www.veteditors.org/consensus-author-guidelines-on-animal-ethics-and-welfare-for-editors/
http://www.veteditors.org/consensus-author-guidelines-on-animal-ethics-and-welfare-for-editors/
http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/publishing-and-editorial-issues/clinical-trial-registration.html
http://www.equator-network.org/
http://www.consort-statement.org/downloads
http://www.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines/prisma/
http://www.peneloperesearch.com/equatorwizard/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/services/research_report_guide.html
29 
 
 
 
Acupuncture in Medicine requests all authors submitting any primary data used in their research 
articles if the articles are accepted to be published in the online version of the journal, or provide 
detailed information in their articles on how the data can be obtained. This information should 
include links to third-party data repositories or detailed contact information for third-party data 
sources. Data available only on an author-maintained website will need to be loaded onto either 
the journal’s platform or a third-party platform to ensure continuing accessibility. Examples of 
data types include but are not limited to statistical data files, replication code, text files, audio 
files, images, videos, appendices, and additional charts and graphs necessary to understand the 
original research. The editors can also grant exceptions for data that cannot legally or ethically 
be released. All data submitted should comply with Institutional or Ethical Review Board 
requirements and applicable government regulations. For further information, please contact 
the Editor at dcarr@uvm.edu. 
3. Publishing Policies 
3.1 Publication ethics 
SAGE is committed to upholding the integrity of the academic record. We encourage authors 
to refer to the Committee on Publication Ethics’ International Standards for Authors and view 
the Publication Ethics page on the SAGE Author Gateway 
3.1.1 Plagiarism 
Acupuncture in Medicine and SAGE take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other 
breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our 
authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of published articles. Equally, 
we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be 
checked with duplication-checking software. Where an article, for example, is found to have 
plagiarised other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with 
insufficient acknowledgement, or where the authorship of the article is contested, we reserve 
the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum 
(correction); retracting the article; taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of 
the author's institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; or taking appropriate legal 
action. 
mailto:dcarr@uvm.edu
http://publicationethics.org/files/International%20standards_authors_for%20website_11_Nov_2011.pdf
https://www.sagepub.com/ethics-responsibility
30 
 
 
 
3.1.2 Prior publication 
If material has been previously published it is not generally acceptable for publication in a 
SAGE journal. However, there are certain circumstances where previously published material 
can be considered for publication. Please refer to the guidance on the SAGE Author Gateway or 
if in doubt, contact the Editor at the address given below. 
3.2 Contributor’s publishing agrément 
Before publication, SAGE requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal 
Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. SAGE’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is 
an exclusive licence agreement which means that the author retains copyright in the work but 
grants SAGE the sole and exclusive right and licence to publish for the full legal term of 
copyright. Exceptionsmay exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by 
a proprietor other than SAGE. In this case copyright in the work will be assigned from the 
author to the society. For more information please visit the SAGE Author Gateway 
3.3 Open access and author archiving 
Acupuncture in Medicine offers optional open access publishing via the SAGE Choice 
programme. For more information on Open Access publishing options at SAGE please 
visit SAGE Open Access. For information on funding body compliance, and depositing your 
article in repositories, please visit SAGE’s Author Archiving and Re-Use 
Guidelines and Publishing Policies. 
4. Preparing your manuscript for submission 
 
4.1 Formatting 
The preferred format for your manuscript is Word. LaTeX files are also accepted. Word and 
(La)Tex templates are available on the Manuscript Submission Guidelines page of our Author 
Gateway. 
4.2 Artwork, figures and other graphics 
https://www.sagepub.com/prior-publication
https://www.sagepub.com/contributor-agreement
https://www.sagepub.com/open-access-publishing-options
https://www.sagepub.com/journal-author-archiving-policies-and-re-use
https://www.sagepub.com/journal-author-archiving-policies-and-re-use
https://www.sagepub.com/publishing-policies
https://www.sagepub.com/manuscript-submission-guidelines#PreparingYourManuscript
31 
 
 
 
For guidance on the preparation of illustrations, pictures and graphs in electronic format, please 
visit SAGE’s Manuscript Submission Guidelines 
Figures supplied in colour will appear in colour online regardless of whether or not these 
illustrations are reproduced in colour in the printed version. For specifically requested colour 
reproduction in print, you will receive information regarding the costs from SAGE after receipt 
of your accepted article. 
4.3 Supplementary material 
This journal is able to host additional materials online (e.g. datasets, podcasts, videos, images 
etc) alongside the full-text of the article. For more information please refer to our guidelines on 
submitting supplementary files 
4.4 Reference style 
Acupuncture in Medicine adheres to the SAGE Vancouver reference style. View the SAGE 
Vancouver guidelines to ensure your manuscript conforms to this reference style. 
If you use EndNote to manage references, you can download the SAGE Vancouver EndNote 
output file 
4.5 English language editing services 
Authors seeking assistance with English language editing, translation, or figure and manuscript 
formatting to fit the journal’s specifications should consider using SAGE Language Services. 
Visit SAGE Language Services on our Journal Author Gateway for further information. 
5. Submitting your manuscript 
Acupuncture in Medicine is hosted on SAGE Track, a web based online submission and peer 
review system powered by ScholarOne™ Manuscripts. 
Visit https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aim to login and submit your article online. 
IMPORTANT: Please check whether you already have an account in the system before trying 
to create a new one. If you have reviewed or authored for the journal in the past year it is likely 
https://www.sagepub.com/manuscript-submission-guidelines
https://www.sagepub.com/supplementary-files-on-sage-journals-sj-guidelines-for-authors
https://www.sagepub.com/supplementary-files-on-sage-journals-sj-guidelines-for-authors
https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/sage_vancouver_reference_style_1.pdf
https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/sage_vancouver_reference_style_1.pdf
http://www.endnote.com/
http://endnote.com/downloads/style/sage-vancouver
http://endnote.com/downloads/style/sage-vancouver
http://languageservices.sagepub.com/en/
https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/aim
32 
 
 
 
that you will have had an account created. For further guidance on submitting your manuscript 
online please visit ScholarOne Online Help. 
5.1 ORCID 
As part of our commitment to ensuring an ethical, transparent and fair peer review process 
SAGE is a supporting member of ORCID, the Open Researcher and Contributor ID. ORCID 
provides a unique and persistent digital identifier that distinguishes researchers from every other 
researcher, even those who share the same name, and, through integration in key research 
workflows such as manuscript and grant submission, supports automated linkages between 
researchers and their professional activities, ensuring that their work is recognized. 
The collection of ORCID iDs from corresponding authors is now part of the submission process 
of this journal. If you already have an ORCID iD you will be asked to associate that to your 
submission during the online submission process. We also strongly encourage all co-authors to 
link their ORCID ID to their accounts in our online peer review platforms. It takes seconds to 
do: click the link when prompted, sign into your ORCID account and our systems are 
automatically updated. Your ORCID iD will become part of your accepted publication’s 
metadata, making your work attributable to you and only you. Your ORCID iD is published 
with your article so that fellow researchers reading your work can link to your ORCID profile 
and from there link to your other publications. 
If you do not already have an ORCID iD please follow this link to create one or visit our ORCID 
homepage to learn more. 
5.2 Information required for completing your submission 
You will be asked to provide contact details and academic affiliations for all co-authors via the 
submission system and identify who is to be the corresponding author. These details must match 
what appears on your manuscript. The affiliation listed in the manuscript should be the 
institution where the research was conducted. If an author has moved to a new institution since 
completing the research, the new affiliation can be included in a manuscript note at the end of 
the paper. At this stage please ensure you have included all the required statements and 
declarations and uploaded any additional supplementary files (including reporting guidelines 
where relevant). 
http://orcid.org/
https://orcid.org/register
https://www.sagepub.com/orcid
https://www.sagepub.com/orcid
33 
 
 
 
5.3 Permissions 
Please also ensure that you have obtained any necessary permission from copyright holders 
for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published 
elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, 
please see the Copyright and Permissions page on the SAGE Author Gateway 
6. On acceptance and publication 
6.1 SAGE Production 
Your SAGE Production Editor will keep you informed as to your article’s progress throughout 
the production process. Proofs will be sent by PDF to the corresponding author and should be 
returned promptly. Authors are reminded to check their proofs carefully to confirm that all 
author information, including names, affiliations, sequence and contact details are correct, and 
that Funding and Conflict of Interest statements, if any, are accurate. Please note that if there 
are any changes to the author list at this stage all authors will be required to complete and sign 
a form authorising the change. 
6.2 Online First publication 
Online First allows final articles (completed and approved articles awaiting assignment to a 
future issue) to be published online prior to their inclusion in a journal issue, which significantly 
reduces the lead time between submission and publication. Visit the SAGE Journals help page 
for more details, including how to cite Online First articles. 
6.3 Access to your published article 
SAGE provides authors with online access to their final article. 
6.4 Promoting your article 
Publication is not the end of the process! You can help disseminate your paper and ensure it is 
as widely read and cited as possible. The SAGE Author Gateway has numerous resources