Project Description
Dry needling is a treatment that involves a very thin needle being pushed through the skin in order to stimulate a trigger point. This form of therapy is used to release tight muscle bands that are associated with trigger point, or hard “knots” within a muscle that can cause pain over a large area. Sometimes these trigger points or muscle spasms can make it difficult to perform everyday tasks because there is pain every time the area is touched. This pain can even radiate to nearby areas of the body.
Dry needling is different than acupuncture, which is intended to unblock energy meridians and help create balance within the bodily system. While traditional acupnucture focuses on addressing the flow of energy around the body and bodily organs, dry needling focuses on stimulating a specific trigger point that is leading to pain and disability.
Myofacial trigger points are a common type of pain. These trigger points are usually the result of a muscle injury, such as common running injuries or repetitive strain. Trigger points are painful when pressed on and can create pain in another area as well, which is called referred pain. It can even generate something called hyperalgesia, which is an increased sensitivity to pain and which is often the result of damage to nociceptors or the peripheral nerves.
For example, trigger points in the muscles of the shoulder, neck and face are a common source of headaches because the trigger point refers pain to the head. Trigger points can develop during occupational, recreational or sports activities when muscle use exceeds muscle capacity and normal recovery is disturbed. Dry needling differs from other types of physical therapy because it focuses on stimulating these trigger points and releasing the tension in order to alleviate pain.
What is Dry Needling Able to Treat?
Dry needling involves using a thin filiform needle to penetrate the skin and stimulate underlying myofascial trigger points, muscular and connective tissues in order to relieve pain and movement impairments.
According to the American Physical Therapy Association, trigger points have been identified in numerous diagnoses, including:
- migraines
- tension-type headaches
- carpal tunnel syndrome
- computer-related disorders
- whiplash associated disorders
- spinal dysfunction
- pelvic pain and other urologic syndromes
- post-herpetic neuralgia
- complex regional pain syndrome
- nocturnal cramps
- phantom pain
- tendonitis
- disk pathology
- joint dysfunction
This type of therapy is also used to treat dysfunctions in skeletal muscle, fascia and connective tissue. It reduces and restores impairments of body structure and function, leading to improved activity and participation.
Is Dry Needling Safe?
Dry needling is appropriate for nearly all patients who do not have a significant fear of needles . Like any type of therapy, dry needling may deliver unintended side effects, such as pain at the stop of needle insertion, muscle soreness, fatigue and bruising. In the hands of a skilled physical therapist, dry needling is a safe and effective treatment option and the patient will see benefits in range of motion and joint use right away.
It’s normal that it may take several dry needling therapy sessions before the muscle is fully functional again. This is because trigger points are located under deep layers of muscles, so it typically takes several sessions for the changes to take full effect. But patients will notice the difference right after each treatment.
Dry needling is also known to be relatively painless. Generally, the needle insertion is not felt and the local twitch response only provokes a very brief pain response, feeling more like a shock or cramping sensation. A local twitch response is a therapeutic response that serves as a sign that the needle has hit the trigger point, so it’s actually a good and desirable reaction.
Our complementary services include physiotherapy, chiropractic, registered massage therapy, acupuncture, taping, custom orthotics, shockwave and bracing.
