When it comes to needle-based therapies, you will most commonly hear of Contemporary Western (Medical) Acupuncture and ‘Traditional Chinese Acupuncture’. While both practices involve the use of thin needles, they differ in technique, philosophy, and application. At Renew Health, we practice Contemporary Medical Acupuncture - which has techniques including dry needling, electro-acupuncture and medical acupuncture.

During a dry needling/acupuncture treatment, one or more thin, monofilament needles are inserted into a muscle trigger point. A trigger point is a local band of tight, irritable and dysfunctional muscle tissue. This often emerges because of injury, overuse or poor movement patterns. When needling is applied to an affected muscle or trigger point, it can decrease muscle tightness, increase blood flow and reduce pain. Patients often report immediate relief after treatment. The needles remain in your muscle for a short period of time during treatment.Our practitioners will perform an in-depth assessment to determine if dry needling/acupuncture is an appropriate treatment for you. The dry needling/acupuncture usually is paired with exercise and other therapy techniques to prevent trigger points from reoccurring.

Dry needling/acupuncture is a safe technique for treating many musculoskeletal conditions, including shoulder pain, rotator cuff pain, biceps tendinitis, iliotibial band syndrome, Achilles tendinitis, low back pain, tennis elbow, whiplash or neck pain, headaches, muscle strains, hip pain and temporomandibular (jaw) pain, also called TMJ.

Trigger points are usually painful to the touch. So, before the needling, you may experience some pain while your provider is locating the trigger point.You may also feel discomfort during the needling. Sometimes, people don’t feel the needle going in because it’s so small, but other times, people will feel a prick. When the needle is in the trigger point, it can be painful and cause a twitch response. Afterward, you may feel tightness or soreness near the insertion site, but it’s important to keep moving and stretching.

Dry needling may help relieve pain and increase your range of motion. Conditions that dry needling may treat include:●      Myofascial pain●      Joint Irritation/Syndrome●      Tendinopathy●      Nerve Entrapments/Irritation such as sciatica●      Migraine and tension-type headaches.●      Jaw and mouth problems, such as temporomandibular (jaw) joint (TMJ) disorders.●      Whiplash.●      Repetitive motion disorders, such as carpal tunnel syndrome.