What are Trigger Points?
I think we have all experienced tension. You know, when you are sitting at your desk all day and your traps, shoulders, and neck start to tighten up and bother you? Well most likely your desk isn't going anywhere and neither is that tension. That is unless you do something about it. The reason why these muscles tighten up is because your posture is beginning to fail. Believe or not we were not designed to sit at a desk all day long. Shocking right? So when you're sitting at your computer for the 10th straight hour and your head begins to fall forward, your shoulders roll inward, and your low back begins to slouch those tight muscles start acting up. They are tightening because they can NOT do this anymore! In those tight muscles are trigger points, which are nodules of muscle that form typically as a result of overuse or injury. They can feel like a small pea or walnut under the skin and cause tenderness with applied pressure. The tenderness that results from pressing on a trigger point can be localized or radiate pain to a different place. When trigger points irritate the surrounding nerves, causing pain in another area, it is known as referred pain. Referred pain is commonly the source of tension and tension headaches. Active trigger points are always tender and can also cause muscle weakness and restrict motion.
Trigger Point Injections target those areas of tension and are given directly in the muscle. These injections are done with an extremely small gauge needle that utilize a safe combination of non-steroidal substances and saline. This solution irritates the area and breaks apart muscle spasms and scar tissue in order to heal the muscle by promoting blood flow and allowing for the transport of oxygen and essential nutrients, thus deactivating the trigger point. The solution also contains 1% Lidocaine which numbs the area where the injection is administered to make you as comfortable as possible during treatment.
Trigger Point Injections are also typically covered by health insurance. At Adjust Physical Medicine, we’re always looking for ways to get you better faster with non-invasive procedures that can get you back to your life as quickly as possible. To see if you are a good candidate for Trigger Point Therapy click here.
I think we have all experienced tension. You know, when you are sitting at your desk all day and your traps, shoulders, and neck start to tighten up and bother you? Well most likely your desk isn't going anywhere and neither is that tension. That is unless you do something about it. The reason why these muscles tighten up is because your posture is beginning to fail. Believe or not we were not designed to sit at a desk all day long. Shocking right? So when you're sitting at your computer for the 10th straight hour and your head begins to fall forward, your shoulders roll inward, and your low back begins to slouch those tight muscles start acting up. They are tightening because they can NOT do this anymore! In those tight muscles are trigger points, which are nodules of muscle that form typically as a result of overuse or injury. They can feel like a small pea or walnut under the skin and cause tenderness with applied pressure. The tenderness that results from pressing on a trigger point can be localized or radiate pain to a different place. When trigger points irritate the surrounding nerves, causing pain in another area, it is known as referred pain. Referred pain is commonly the source of tension and tension headaches. Active trigger points are always tender and can also cause muscle weakness and restrict motion.
Trigger Point Injections target those areas of tension and are given directly in the muscle. These injections are done with an extremely small gauge needle that utilize a safe combination of non-steroidal substances and saline. This solution irritates the area and breaks apart muscle spasms and scar tissue in order to heal the muscle by promoting blood flow and allowing for the transport of oxygen and essential nutrients, thus deactivating the trigger point. The solution also contains 1% Lidocaine which numbs the area where the injection is administered to make you as comfortable as possible during treatment.
Trigger Point Injections are also typically covered by health insurance. At Adjust Physical Medicine, we’re always looking for ways to get you better faster with non-invasive procedures that can get you back to your life as quickly as possible. To see if you are a good candidate for Trigger Point Therapy click here.
