Dry Needling involves multiple advances of an acupuncture needle into the muscle in the region of a ‘Trigger Point’. The aim of dry needling is to achieve a local twitch response to release muscle tension and pain and is an effective treatment for musculoskeletal pain.
The needle used is very thin and most patients do not even feel it penetrate the skin. A healthy muscle feels very little discomfort with insertion of this needle, however if the muscle is sensitive and shortened or has active trigger points within it, the subject will feel a sensation like a muscle cramp -'the twitch response'.
Patients soon learn to recognise and even welcome this sensation as it results in deactivating the trigger point, reducing pain and restoring normal length function to the involved muscle. It is not the same as acupuncture that works on the energy meridians of the body, dry needling is primarily focused on musculoskeletal injuries, and as such often accompanies an osteopathy, myotherapy or remedial massage session rather than being utilised alone.