Trigger Point Dry Needling(TDN)/Intramuscular Manual Therapy(IMT)

Dry needling is performed by inserting a filament needle into a muscle in the area of a trigger point. The goal of dry needling is to decrease muscle tension and provide pain relief by deactivating trigger points in the muscles.  Dry Needling is an effective treatment for many conditions with minimal side effects, the most common of these being muscle soreness. Often patients report immediate pain reduction or relief following a treatment.

What are trigger points?

Trigger points are hyper-irritable spots, usually a taut band of skeletal muscle or fascia. The spot is painful on compression and can give rise to characteristic referred pain, tenderness, and autonomic phenomena.

Why do trigger points form?

Trigger points are thought to form due to: increased or altered muscle demands, muscle overload prolonged muscle contraction (such as working at a computer), nerve compression, post trauma, and stress.

How does TDN/IMT work?

The insertion of the filament needle into the muscle will ideally cause a reaction known as a twitch response. The twitch response is an involuntary contraction of the muscle. This muscle twitch acts as a reset for the muscle fibers in the surrounding area resulting in decreased muscle tension, improved range of motion and decreased pain. The exact mechanism behind the improvements seen with dry needling is still uncertain. These improvements are likely a result of mechanical, neurophysiologic, and chemical changes in the muscle tissue.

What conditions can be treated with TDN/IMT?

TDN/IMT is an effective treatment for a variety of conditions including low back pain, neck pain, tennis elbow, tendonitis, frozen shoulder, headaches, chronic pain, muscle strains, and many others.

Is TDN like acupuncture?

Trigger point dry needling is NOT acupuncture. TDN is based on western medicine. It is a technique used to treat the neuro-musckuloskeletal system based on pain patterns, muscular dysfunction and other orthopedic signs and symptoms.  Needles are placed in a specific anatomic structure based on examination findings.

 Acupuncture is a treatment based on traditional eastern medical diagnosis and requires training in traditional Chinese medicine.  Practitioners of Traditional Chinese medicine treat patients using acupuncture points located on meridians. These are metaphysically determined points which do not correspond with a specific anatomic structure.

INCONTINENCE
Asking yourself the following questions can change your life!!

• Are you experiencing urine leakage when you cough, sneeze, strain or laugh? Are you experiencing leakage when you run, jump, lift or stand up?
• Are you going to the restroom every 2-3 hours while you are awake?
• Are you getting up one or more times in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom?
• Are you pregnant and experiencing leakage or getting ready to deliver?

If you have answered yes to any of these questions pelvic floor strengthening and bladder retraining can help you get control of your bladder and your life.
What is the Kegel exercise?
Kegel exercises strengthen muscles of the pelvic floor responsible for maintaining bladder continence.
Your physical therapist will take time to help you isolate and identify the muscles of your pelvic floor. Often a few visits will be all you need to start on your independent strengthening program.
Kegel exercises are recommended during pregnancy. Well-toned pelvic floor muscles can make you more comfortable as your due date approaches. You will be less likely to develop urine leakage and hemorrhoids — both common near the end of pregnancy and prone to persist long after you’ve given birth.

Biofeedback can help.
If you have trouble doing Kegel exercises, biofeedback training will help. In a biofeedback session you will insert a small monitoring probe into your vagina. When you contract your pelvic floor muscles, you’ll see a measurement on a monitor and hear a beep that lets you know whether you’ve successfully contracted the right muscles. You’ll also be able to see how long you hold the contraction.
Call us, we can help you!