Dry Needling
Trigger point dry needling or intra-muscular stimulation is a procedure that aims to reduce local and referred pain by means of producing a muscular contraction with a small filament needle. We’ve learned that a well-
placed needle into a trigger point or soft tissue can reset that muscle quicker and with less pain than when using one’s hands or other therapy instruments. It’s earned the term ‘dry’ because there are no injections made into the tissues of the body. Needling causes a localized inflammatory response to tissues in need of fresh nutrients, and helps relieve pain associated with arthritis, whiplash, nerve irritation, muscular strain, ligament strains and herniated discs.
Dry needling and acupuncture, while using the same needles, are two very different treatments. Acupuncture is used to treat from a holistic standpoint, while Dry Needling is more mechanistic in nature. Acupuncture is effective in reducing pain, but also aims at treating conditions such as digestive problems, infertility, flu and high blood pressure. Trigger point dry needling, on the other hand is useful for many orthopedic complaints such as:
- Cervicogenic headaches
- Acute and chronic neck and low back pain
- Ligamentous problems (plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendinosis, ACL, MCL, LCL, tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow)
- Muscular hematomas
- Shin splints
- Hip pain (IT band syndrome, piriformis syndrome)
- Rotator cuff syndrome, shoulder impingement syndrome
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Bursitis
- Deactivates myofascial trigger points which can cause musculoskeletal pain
- Restores normal length and function to the involved muscle
- Reduces pain and inflammation
- Accelerates naturally / reduces recovery time
Frequency of dry needling sessions is dependent on the issue and the degree of its severity. Even better, when paired with other therapies such as chiropractic adjustments and tissue manipulation, dry needling more effectively helps reduce pain and restore function…