Dry Needle therapy?

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lporter229
lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Has anyone had dry needle therapy for tendon problems? I am a distance runner seeing a PT for a chronic hamstring issue and he is doing dry needle therapy to stimulate healing. I am trying to figure out what to expect and would love to hear some of your experiences.

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  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
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    Is that the same as acupuncture? If so, the reviews among people I know who have had it done are pretty split 50/50
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
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    It is similar to acupuncture, from what I understand. I think they try to differentiate the two because acupuncture has some spiritual elements associated with it and also insurance would not likely pay for "acupuncture". Other than that, I get the sense that it's the same concept.

    It basically works by activating trigger points deep within the muscle in order to loosen it up. Yesterday was my second session and it hurt pretty bad when he put the needles in. Not the pinch of the needle, but the deep, throbbing pain of the muscle being activated. However, immediately following the treatment my hamstrings felt spectacular. I did a series of exercises and he was satisfied enough with my ability that he told me to try an easy run. The run was not as pain free as I had hoped though and today my muscles feel tight again. Maybe I just need to give it more time.

    That is why I am trying to figure out what to expect. I am scheduled to run the Boston Marathon (my first time), in less than 6 weeks and I am kind of freaking out!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
    edited March 2017
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    Not for tendons, but I had a lot of dry needling done for trigger points in my back when I herniated a disk. They were pretty helpful in releasing those. I had to do a lot of PT as well though.
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Not for tendons, but I had a lot of dry needling done for trigger points in my back when I herniated a disk. They were pretty helpful in releasing those. I had to do a lot of PT as well though.

    How many sessions did you do? Were the results immediate, or did it take time to notice the difference? Or did you feel better afterwards and then gradually drift back to pain?

    Sorry for so many questions, like I said, I am just trying to manage my expectations. Most of what I read about recovery for hamstring tendonosis indicates that it is a slow process. I am trying to determine if the needling will help accelerate it. My PT seems to think so, but I am wondering if he may be overly optimistic since he specializes in this technique.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    lporter229 wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    Not for tendons, but I had a lot of dry needling done for trigger points in my back when I herniated a disk. They were pretty helpful in releasing those. I had to do a lot of PT as well though.

    How many sessions did you do? Were the results immediate, or did it take time to notice the difference? Or did you feel better afterwards and then gradually drift back to pain?

    Sorry for so many questions, like I said, I am just trying to manage my expectations. Most of what I read about recovery for hamstring tendonosis indicates that it is a slow process. I am trying to determine if the needling will help accelerate it. My PT seems to think so, but I am wondering if he may be overly optimistic since he specializes in this technique.

    I felt immediately better after the sessions, but the trigger points kept recurring...after 3 sessions my GP sent me to a PT as my trigger points were primarily my body's response to the herniated disk and pinched nerve. I also did a lot of rehab work on my own.

    Unfortunately, I really had to pretty much stop training which sucked because I was registered for a 4 part time trial series for July-August. I ended up stubbornly doing the first race and was in incredible pain for days after...that's basically when I threw in the towel and just focused on rehab pretty much full time and only did short, easy rides a couple times per week and little to no lifting.

    I was in PT for about 8 weeks before I was essentially pain free and released, but I still had issues getting back into my training and had to continue to do rehab work...I wasn't really back in the saddle and back to lifting full time until December.
  • _BlahBlah_BlackSheep_
    _BlahBlah_BlackSheep_ Posts: 2,148 Member
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    I had it done for Achilles tendinitis a couple of times. It's uncomfortable but not awful. Tough to say if it really helped, because I was also getting physical therapy at the same time.
  • ZephieC
    ZephieC Posts: 162 Member
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    I don't know anything about your specific injury. I had dry needling sessions to release the muscles in my neck causing TMJ issues. They use acupuncture needles but instead of leaving them stationary they move them around to find the knots in the muscles. The muscles grab the needle and than relax. For me it hurt like heck but the results were amazing. After the first session my neck was so stiff and sore I felt like I had been beat up but after a day or 2 it felt much better. I had multiple session to cover from the base of my neck into the hair line. Taking care of the cause (grinding my teeth) helped stop the problem. My PT learned in a class where they had to practice on themselves, so I found he had a good understanding of the pain and whether it was worth it.
  • improvement_not_perfection
    improvement_not_perfection Posts: 21 Member
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    I have had it on my Achilles as I have a partial tear. It was uncomfortable but a good deep breath got me through it. I had it done half a dozen times along with physio. Between the needling and the physio I am able to stand on my toes again and drop my heal. I don't really know if it helped or it was the physio that helped. I stopped physio last December as I felt I was not getting better or worse. Today I am able to run again, a slower pace for now. I still swell and there is still pain but I can live with it. Good luck!
  • Willbenchforcupcakes
    Willbenchforcupcakes Posts: 4,955 Member
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    I find it incredibly helpful. Short term, yes the needling hurts, especially when my physio gets a really good grabbing spot. The only thing that bothers me after is when she does my it band. That just feels heavy for about 36 hours after but the rewards after are very much worth it.

    Long term, it's really helped muscle tone. Basically, the muscles we treat stay "normal" instead of turning into tight ropes. Admittedly that took a long time, and was also likely due to balancing out some imbalances, but it has helped everything.
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
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    Thanks for all of the input. I guess this technique is more common than I realized. For those that have tried it, were you on complete rest throughout your therapy or did you continue to exercise? I can run, but there is definite discomfort. I am not sure if pushing through it will prolong the recovery.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    lporter229 wrote: »
    Thanks for all of the input. I guess this technique is more common than I realized. For those that have tried it, were you on complete rest throughout your therapy or did you continue to exercise? I can run, but there is definite discomfort. I am not sure if pushing through it will prolong the recovery.

    I pretty much had to rest...pain combined with the fact that both of my arms were numb down to my fingertips.

    I think it really just depends on the injury.

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