Trigger Point Release

Have you ever experienced a tight muscle or been told that you have a muscle knot? Have you experienced severe discomfort or pain from stiff muscles?

There are hundreds of muscles in the body and they control every physical movement we do. They are being used on a daily basis to allow us to do the things that matter to us (such as playing sports, going for a walk around the block, etc). Due to frequent use, the muscles can sometimes become sore and tight, leading to discomfort and pain. One specific type of muscle pain that can occur is known as trigger point pain.

In this post, I want to delve deeper into trigger point pain in muscles and discuss how chiropractic care can help alleviate this type of pain.

What is a Trigger Point Within the Muscle?

Before discussing trigger points, it is helpful to understand that muscles comprise not only of the part that actively contracts, but also the surrounding tissue known as fascia. The fascia surrounds the muscle supporting the muscle’s structure. Overuse of the muscle from excessive exercise, poor recovery after exercising, poor posture, and lack of stretching can cause both the muscle and fascia to tighten. When this happens, they lose mobility and become sources of pain. These tightened areas become very discrete points of sensitivity and pain called trigger points. 

Trigger points are specific areas within a muscle and its surrounding fascia that are tighter and more hypersensitive than the surrounding tissue. Due to their increased sensitivity developed over time, pressing on these trigger points can cause intense pain. Patients and health care providers describe painful trigger points as painful and tight knots within the muscle. When trigger points develop, in addition to discomfort and pain, they limit a person’s ability to perform their daily activities. 

 

Because the muscle is not as mobile and loose as it once was, a person feels that their affected body region is not as flexible and they are less able to carry out activities that are important to them.

Not only do these trigger points cause pain in the immediate area, patients can often feel the pain traveling to related regions of the body when trigger points are pressed. For example, a trigger point in the upper shoulder muscles may cause a person to feel pain in both the shoulder and down the arm toward the elbow.

 

Trigger points located in the neck muscles can also cause headache-like symptoms.

Similar examples are seen for trigger points in the low back causing pain toward the buttock region. 

 

How can Chiropractic Help?

Once these trigger points are found by the chiropractor, they can be effectively treated to relax the muscles, increase mobility, and reduce pain. This type of therapy is called trigger point release.

Trigger point release therapy seeks to release/relax the trigger point through hands-on pressure applied by the chiropractor. A chiropractor uses different hands-on techniques to mobilize the muscle and fascia, restoring its mobility and enhancing the patient’s physical function. This type of treatment can be added to joint mobilizations and spinal adjustments to further improve mobility, reduce pain, and enhance positive outcomes. 

 

What the Research Says:

 

One research study (a randomized controlled trial) assessed the effectiveness of trigger point release applied to trigger points located in the neck muscles. The patients in this study were experiencing tension-type headache pain as a result of trigger points.

The study showed that after multiple treatments, the trigger points gradually became less sensitive and produced less pain when pressed.

The study suggests that once the muscle and fascia are loosened and less painful, the muscle will respond more positively to active stretching and strengthening exercises. From a chiropractor perspective, reduced muscle tension enhances the effectiveness of spinal adjusting, thereby amplifying the overall benefits of chiropractic treatments. In this way, trigger point release is a valuable technique and great treatment option in a chiropractor’s toolkit. 

 

 

References:

1. Shah JP, Thaker N, Heimur J, Aredo JV, Sikdar S, Gerber L. Myofascial Trigger Points Then and Now: A Historical and Scientific Perspective. PM R. 2015 Jul;7(7):746-761. doi: 10.1016/j.pmrj.2015.01.024. Epub 2015 Feb 24. PMID: 25724849; PMCID: PMC4508225.
2. https://www.physio-pedia.com/Trigger_Points#cite_note-:0-1
3. Moraska AF, Schmiege SJ, Mann JD, Butryn N, Krutsch JP. Responsiveness of Myofascial Trigger Points to Single and Multiple Trigger Point Release Massages: A Randomized, Placebo Controlled Trial. Am J Phys Med Rehabil. 2017 Sep;96(9):639-645. doi: 10.1097/PHM.0000000000000728. PMID: 28248690; PMCID: PMC5561477.