In the past decade, a modality called dry needling has gained traction in the rehab and pain management communities to address neuromuscular pain and/or dysfunction. It’s not for everyone, but it can have very powerful results.
Dry needling is defined as a skilled intervention that uses a thin filiform needle to penetrate the skin and stimulate underlying myofascial trigger points, muscular, and connective tissues for the management of neuromusculoskeletal pain and movement impairments. Trigger points are taut bands of muscle tissue that are irritable to stimuli of compression, stretch, or contraction of the tissue. People will sometimes refer to them as “knots”. There are several theories as to how these trigger points develop, and the most popular theories involve overuse of a particular muscle band that results in the painful taut band.
Trigger points often refer pain to other parts of the body. All of the muscles in the human body have common pain referral patterns. For example, a painful sensation in the hand could really be referred from muscle dysfunction in the shoulder. A common site that people will experience this type of referred pain is in the head. It could be mistaken for a headache but actually be referred from the neck. Good clinicians assess areas above and below the involved area, in order to determine the root cause of the pain and dysfunction.
The below image represents referral pain sites as red dots from the trigger points marked with ‘x’ – in this example it’s the sternocleidomastoid muscle that can refer pain to the head.
Dry needling is not to be confused with acupuncture. Although the type of needle is the same, they are different treatment methods. Dry needling is performed with the intent of releasing trigger points in muscles or surrounding tissues. Acupuncture is rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, as an alternative treatment for medical conditions, with the philosophy of releasing chi (energy flow) in particular manners. Both can be used for treatment of pain, but the approach is vastly different.
Sometimes electric stimulation (e-stim) is coupled with the dry needling. This is referred to as intra-muscular electric nerve stimulation. You may be familiar with TENS, which is transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation – utilizing sticky pads that are placed on the skin over the painful area. The same electric currents are used, but they are delivered directly into the muscle tissue via the inserted needle(s), so the stimulation can be more isolated to the muscle we wish to target.
Dry needling is an intervention that we are oftentimes in favor of. It’s not for everyone and every condition by any means, but it can certainly be a game changer when used appropriately!
Watch the video below for a peek at what dry needling looks like in action.
Subscribe to our weekly Newsletter
Other Blogs
Bending Your Back is Okay
Last week we reviewed the hip-hinge movement pattern. If you missed it, read it here. But what if you need to bend your back while lifting or doing anything else for that matter? Is bending your back bad? It absolutely isn’t. The spine is designed to bend, twist,...
The Hip Hinge
There are a few things to consider when going to lift something from the floor: How heavy is the object? Have I lifted something this heavy before? If so, when's the last time that I've done it? How often do I do this? The answers to these questions will dictate...
Dynamic Movements for Mobility
Recap from last week: Sometimes stretching just feels good, and there’s definitely a time and place for it. However, we recommend dynamic movement over stretching when possible. Taking your body and joints through its full range of motion frequently is the best way to...
To Stretch or not to Stretch?
A question that we often get is “when should I stretch and for how long?”. This is a great question, because there’s not a one-size-fits-all answer. It depends on the individual and their goals. For example, a 15 year old gymnast has different goals and external...
Don’t Forget About The Soleus
The calf - A common area to have aches/pains. The soleus - An often neglected muscle. Many people miss out on a key calf muscle when training. This can contribute to reduced flexibility, strength, and endurance; while also feeding into common active injuries,...
1 Rep Max (1RM) Living
1 repetition maximum (1RM) refers to the maximum amount of weight a person can possibly lift for 1 repetition. If the daily tasks that someone performs (such as doing laundry or going up and down stairs) are equivalent (or close) to their 1 repetition maximum, then...
Can a Physical Therapist Help Me?
Pain. What’s causing it? Will it go away? Am I making it worse? Who can help me? These are normal questions to ask when confronting pain, and unless you’ve dedicated years of your life to understanding it, it’s difficult to know the answers to all of these...
4 Simple Strategies You Can Implement For Better Sleep
Quality sleep is slowly becoming recognized as a new vital sign, but why? Sure, a poor night of sleep will make you feel groggy and unproductive, but the negative effects of poor sleep extend further than that. Quality sleep has been shown to be critical for immune...