Punción seca: un tratamiento efectivo

The Dra. Estébanez is a specialist in Physiotherapy and Osteopathy of Valencia. In this article he explains what is the treatment by dry needling, an effective procedure for pathologies such as contractures, lumbalgia and tension headaches.

Dry needling is one of the physiotherapy techniques of those considered invasive, since it involves applying an acupuncture needle to the trigger point of the muscle.. The trigger point of the muscle can be felt as a taut band in it, and may cause pain in that same place or in other more distant areas (referred pain).

An example of a trigger point and referred pain is the following:

The trigger points of the trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscles are marked with crosses, however the pain they provoke is represented by a red shading, far from these points.

Applying the needle in the trigger points would eliminate pain locally and referred pain, for this reason it is a very effective technique. Although it is a bit more painful than manual treatment, patients demand it because of its high effectiveness.

However, it is a palliative technique, because if the cause of the contracture of that muscle is not treated, it will be reloaded with more or less speed. For this reason, the treatment must also include other postural measures and healthy habits.

Pathologies that are treated with dry needling

Among them are muscle pain of any kind, muscle contractures, cervicalgias, lumbalgias, tension headache and sports injuries.