Dry needling is a therapeutic procedure that involves the use of needles to relax sore and tense muscles. The result is a deep relaxation of tissues, which improves mobility, function, and pain reduction, which is most often caused by myofascial pain syndrome or trigger points.
The trigger point is a group of tense muscle fibers that must be mechanically relaxed due to a loss of relaxation ability. This muscle area feels like a knot when touched, is painful or tender, and can cause pain to spread to other parts of the body. Massage or physical therapy are frequently ineffective at relaxing such a point.The most common areas are the neck and shoulders and the lower back. They can occur due to acute or chronic overload of the affected muscle, injury, psychological stress or illness.
Dry needling has been shown in studies to have the fastest effect in reducing muscle pain, by up to 50% in a single treatment.
This technique can be used to treat nearly any painful condition, the most common of which are: - headaches - painful syndromes of the neck and lower back - ischialgia - overexertion syndromes (tennis elbow, golf elbow) - muscle tension caused by long periods of sitting - Muscle tension.