Can Trigger Point Injections
Benefit You?
If you experience muscle pain, fibromyalgia or tension headaches, trigger point injections may be just the solution. This technique involves pinpointing the painful area and using injections to allow your muscles to relax.
What Are Trigger Points?
Before we dive too deep into trigger point injections, what exactly do they treat? Trigger points are those painful knots that you feel in your muscles.
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It’s not entirely known what causes them, but theories suggest trigger points could be related to a decrease in blood flow to the muscle fibers. This can cause your muscles to abnormally contract.
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As your muscles contract, they irritate the surrounding nerves — this results in acute or chronic pain. Needless to say, trigger points are an unwanted issue in anybody’s life.
The Trigger Point Injection Process
If you suffer from trigger points, injections are a safe and proven method that pinpoints the exact location of your pain. Let’s take a deeper look:
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1. Your clinician will identify the “knot” or “knots.” The area is then cleaned with antiseptic solution.
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2. A small needle is inserted into the middle of the knot and the solution is injected. This solution is made up of steroids and anesthetics. The specific type depends on the type and severity of your pain.
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3. Depending on your symptoms, the clinician may inject the solution into multiple sites or perform multiple injections.
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4. Trigger point injections can be repeated in 1-2 weeks, depending on the results and the insurance company. The whole process can be performed multiple times, depending on the response of the patient to the injection.
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5. After the injection(s), you’ll have full use of your muscle. However, be sure to avoid strenuous in the first few days after the injection.
Find The Treatment That Works For You
The entire process only takes a few minutes and can be very effective when treating muscle pain.
Keep in mind, some trigger points may not even require trigger point injections. Physical therapy can be a great way to treat early onset trigger points. However, for more chronic cases, injections are often the best route to take.
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Our goal is to work with every patient to make sure that the treatment is best for your type of pain and level of activity. If you’d like to know more about trigger points injections, visit our contact page to schedule an appointment.