What exactly is dry needling for physical therapy and does it really work?

Need an effective treatment for your injury or other physical condition? Dry needling is a specialty physical therapy service associated with many health benefits. Like other physical therapy treatments, dry needling is often used alongside other interventions such as personalized exercises, blood flow restriction (BFR) therapy and more. Though dry needling has long been used to offer pain relief and ease tension, it is still gaining popularity as its effective results are increasingly recognized.

What exactly does dry needling mean? Learning more about how dry needling works can help you feel more comfortable and confident in the treatment. When providing dry needling treatment, physical therapists use thin, sterile needles. These needles are inserted into the patient’s skin at specific points. Rather than delivering medication, these empty needles are themselves the treatment. Dry needles can release tension in deep muscle tissue and stimulate the body’s natural healing responses. This makes it a great treatment for people with tense or injured muscles. From treating dysfunctions in connective tissue to restoring physical functions, dry needling can serve many purposes. Want to find out how dry needling can help you? By learning about the benefits of dry needling, you can get a better understanding of how it could improve your condition.

Benefits of dry needling in physical therapy

• Pain relief — Pain relief is one of the primary purposes of dry needling. If you’re experiencing chronic pain, dry needling may be helpful. Unlike short-term pain medications, the goal of dry needling is lasting relief. Your physical therapist will provide personalized treatment, targeting the areas that are causing you the most pain. This can lead to quick results. With repeated sessions, your physical therapist can address the root cause of your symptoms to eliminate your pain at the source.

• Improved muscle function — Dry needling can have a major impact on muscle tension. It is often used to address trigger points, also called muscle knots. Trigger points are tight bands in muscle tissue that can cause persistent pain and discomfort. Trigger points may also restrict your range of motion, as your muscles may not be able to fully engage. By inserting dry needles directly into your trigger points, your physical therapist can help you rapidly regain your muscle function. Studies show that dry needling can decrease pain and increase motion. By releasing muscle knots, dry needling is intended to restore range of motion and muscular strength. Improved muscle function can also reduce your risk of injury, helping you stay healthy.

• Treatment synergy — If you want to get the most out of your physical therapy treatment plan, incorporating dry needling may offer significant benefits. Physical therapists who prioritize comprehensive care often use dry needling in conjunction with other treatments. While dry needling keeps your pain under control and accelerates your recovery timeline, other treatments such as exercises can enhance your physical condition. With a holistic treatment plan tailored to your needs, you can experience the combined benefits of several evidence-based techniques working together to provide a superior outcome.

• Reduced swelling — Swelling and inflammation are common symptoms of many different conditions. Whether you need to recover from a work injury or you’re trying to manage arthritis symptoms, finding a solution to your swelling may be a top priority. Dry needling can help. By targeting inflamed tissue, your physical therapist can reduce swelling and ease your discomfort.

• Accelerated healing — The healing effect of dry needling is a major draw for many patients. Dry needling works to trigger your body’s natural healing mechanisms by stimulating blood flow. In many cases, lengthy recovery timelines are the result of minimal blood flow. This is why tissue wounds in areas that don’t get as much blood tend to heal at a slower rate than other injuries. For example, you may notice that a scrape on the bony part of your ankle takes longer to heal than injuries in areas with ample blood supply. Dry needling helps solve this issue by stimulating higher blood flow in targeted areas. This allows more nutrients to reach the damaged tissue, enabling faster healing.

Get quality dry needling treatments at KC Rehab

At KC Rehab, our expert physical therapy team can provide the treatments you need. We use the most efficient modern dry needling techniques to resolve the core problems behind our patients’ symptoms. Following a treatment plan tailored to your needs, you can work with us to experience relief and real healing.

Contact our team today to learn more about our treatment techniques or to schedule an initial appointment.