Dry needling uses acupuncture needles to treat painful trigger point injuries. However, it is a completely different technique from acupuncture, as it acts directly on the injury. The physiotherapy expert will decide whether the applicable technique is superficial or deep, as well as the number of sessions required.
Dry needling: what it is and where it works
Dry needling is a technique that uses acupuncture needles to treat myofascial pain syndrome, produced by trigger points. Trigger points are hypersensitive nodules found within a tight band in skeletal muscle or its associated fascia. Trigger points can be active (when they cause spontaneous pain without the need to be stimulated with pressure), or latent (when they must be pressed for pain to appear).
Dry needling is considered a semi-invasive technique, since the needles penetrate the skin, pressing and contracting the trigger point in order to deactivate it and reduce the pain produced in the patient.
However, it should be noted that it is a technique that has nothing to do with acupuncture.
Treatable injuries with dry needling
Dry needling is a technique indicated for muscular problems, back or neck pain, tendon problems… In general, it can treat many musculoskeletal problems with muscular discomfort or limitations, and where the exploration shows trigger points involved.
It is a technique widely used among physiotherapists with very satisfactory results.
How to apply the dry needling technique and required sessions
There are two ways of performing the technique: superficial and deep. In the former, the needle remains in the subcutaneous cellular tissue covering the trigger point to a maximum depth of 1 cm, without penetrating the muscle. On the other hand, in deep needling, the needle works directly on the trigger point.
In deep puncture, a pattern of one session per week is usually established for a maximum of 6 months. If there are no results or improvement after the third session, the physiotherapy expert will interrupt the treatment.
Differences between acupuncture and dry needling
The dry needling technique is governed by a series of scientific fundamentals. In contrast, there is much controversy regarding the scientific evidence for acupuncture (although in clinical practice it has been shown to be effective).
While in acupuncture the needles are applied to specific points located on meridians, which do not necessarily have to be close to the injured area, in dry needling the needle is applied directly to the trigger point.
Dry needling, on the other hand, is used exclusively or almost exclusively to treat myofascial trigger points. In contrast, acupuncture has applications in multiple fields, such as pain, digestive, gynecological, urinary and reproductive disorders, weight loss or stress, among others.
Also, the application, the rhythm of sessions, the indications and contradictions between both techniques are completely different.