Muscles account for more than 60% of the human body mass and make up the largest part of our bodies. They are responsible for all movement of the human body. With such an enormous responsibility, care must be taken with them since muscles are subjected to wear and tear, fatigue, overuse, and repetitive injury.
When we want to use our muscles, we voluntarily contract them – we “will” them to move. However, sometimes the entire muscle contracts involuntarily – this is called a spasm. Muscles are also subject to another condition known as Trigger Point.
Trigger Point is a painful area that contains knots of muscle which form when muscles involuntarily do not relax. Such knots can be felt under the skin. The muscle remains tight, which weakens the muscle, puts stress on the points where the muscles attach to the bones, and creates pain and dysfunction within the muscle. Trigger points may irritate the nerves around them and cause referred pain, or pain that is felt in another part of the body such as joints. They also may co-occur with chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders.
Trigger points have been shown to be the most common cause of musculoskeletal pain.
Trigger point injections (TPI) may be an option in treating pain for some patients. Not all trigger points require injection or needling. Many active trigger points will respond to physical therapy, especially in the early stages of trigger point formation. However, for chronic trigger points, trigger point injection and needling is an effective treatment.
As the recognized muscle experts, physiatrists are extensively trained in trigger point injections.