Will Dry Needling Work for You?

Dry Needling Clinic |  Are you fed up with being injured? 

Trying to cure or fix an injury by sticking needles in it may seem odd but it actually works.

Dry needling is similar to acupuncture in that it involves inserting needles into your skin near the point of your injury or pain.

What is Dry Needling and is it Safe?

Dry needling is a type of treatment performed by City Physiotherapy Physiotherapists who have been trained to treat neuromuscular injuries in our dry needling clinic.

Dry Needling historically came out of scientific studies into acupuncture and injections of liquid medication like cortisone. It has developed into its own specialised area of treatment and due to its success in treating pain, it continues to grow in popularity.

Your City Physio Physiotherapist will use individually packaged, sterile dry needles. The needles come in various sizes and widths depending on where the needle is applied.  Needling is very safe, especially as our Physiotherapists have undergone specialised training to become certified in the practice of Dry Needling and we already have extensive anatomical knowledge of the body to know where to insert the needles.

How is Dry Needling applied?

Your Physio can insert the needle through your skin into areas of your muscles, known as trigger points.

The number of dry needles used will vary depending on the size of the area of your pain.

Most treatments can involve 5-20 needles.

What is the difference between acupuncture and dry needling?

This is one of the most common questions we get asked about.
Dry needling is based in western medicine and is used to target pain relief in specific areas of your body. Acupuncture is based on traditional Chinese medicine. They insert the needles into areas along meridian lines, which refer to various body parts including your organs.

Physio’s use this type of needling to relieve pain by using the needles to release trigger points of specific muscles.

Do the needles hurt?

Dry needling does not need to be painful at all.  As the needle is inserted through the skin into the muscle, there may be a slight contraction or twitch within the muscle. This may be experienced as a slight pain. These twitches in your trigger points are considered a good sign, as we know we have targeted the centre of your offending trigger points Your muscle fibres will be lengthened after a dry needle twitch response.

Why Does Dry Needling Work? 

Some scientists suggest that needling works via a mechanism called the gate control theory. This is your nervous system’s response to the pain caused by the needle insertion into your muscle, therefore the chronic pain from your injury goes away.

Dry needling can stimulate your brain to release endorphins, which are mood-stimulating chemicals and these can also alleviate pain.

Dry needling also deactivates muscular trigger points when they are inserted into the right location, relieving tension and referred pain.

The direct microtrauma of the needle puncture can also kick-start your body’s natural healing process.

What is Dry Needling used to treat?

Your Physiotherapist can treat most musculoskeletal injuries and pains with needles at our dry needling clinic.  Anything from sports injuries, tight muscles, muscle and soft tissue sprains, strains and tears, bursitis, tendonitis, headaches, arthritis, jaw pain, heel pain, shin splints, sprained ankles, ligaments, tennis elbow, plantar fascia, Achilles tendon issues, shoulder rotator cuff injuries and more.
Ask your City Physiotherapy Physiotherapist if Dry Needling can benefit your aches and pains.
www.cityphysiotherapy.com.au

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