Article

OBJECTIVE: To provide evidence for the existence of 6 myofascial meridians
proposed by Myers based on anatomic dissection studies. DATA SOURCES: Relevant
articles published between 1900 and December 2014 were searched in MEDLINE
(PubMed), ScienceDirect,
and Google Scholar.
STUDY SELECTION:
Peer-reviewed human
anatomic dissection studies reporting morphologic continuity between the muscular
constituents of the examined meridians were included. If no study demonstrating a
structural connection between 2 muscles was found, articles on general anatomy of
the corresponding body region were targeted. DATA EXTRACTION: Continuity between
2 muscles was documented if 2 independent investigators agreed that it was
reported clearly. Also, 2 independent investigators rated methodologic quality of
included studies by means of a validated assessment tool (Quality Appraisal for
Cadaveric Studies). DATA SYNTHESIS: The literature search identified 6589
articles. Of these, 62 article met the inclusion criteria. The studies reviewed
suggest strong evidence for the existence of 3 myofascial meridians: the
superficial back line (all 3 transitions verified, based on 14 studies), the back
functional line (all 3 transitions verified, based on 8 studies) and the front
functional line (both transitions verified, based on 6 studies).
Moderate-to-strong evidence is available for parts of the spiral line (5 of 9
verified transitions, based on 21 studies) and the lateral line (2 of 5 verified
transitions, based on 10 studies). No evidence exists for the superficial front
line (no verified transition, based on 7 studies). CONCLUSIONS: The present
systematic review suggests that most skeletal muscles of the human body are
directly linked by connective tissue. Examining the functional relevance of these
myofascial chains is the most urgent task of future research. Strain transmission
along meridians would both open a new frontier for the understanding of referred
pain and provide a rationale for the development of more holistic treatment
approaches.
CI - Copyright (c) 2016 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by
Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS