Essential Facts You Should Know About Trigger Point Injections

When you try touching it, do you have a painful spot that feels like a knot and seems sensitive to pressure and touch? Such a spot is known as a trigger point and may require injections to help soothe your pain and offer relief. Trigger point injections are a part of regenerative medicine San Diego that may combine local anesthesia and corticosteroid. Sometimes, your doctor may inject the trigger point without any injection substance inside the needle to relieve pain from the knots. Here is a discussion on what trigger point injections can do and what to expect during treatment.

What Do Trigger Point Injections Do?

Trigger points feel like knots and small bumps in your muscle when you touch them and may cause tenderness and pain in the tissue wrapping your muscle. Trigger points in different muscles can cause neck, hip, low back, and head pain. Therefore, your doctor may recommend trigger point injections to help treat pain in these areas due to a knot in your associated muscle. You will make a good candidate for trigger point injections if your pain does not improve with therapy and pain medications. Usually, you will use your injections alongside exercises and physical therapy to help relieve your pain, especially if you have pain that makes it hard to do your physical therapy.

What Will Happen During Trigger Point Injections Treatment?

Your doctor will begin by cleansing the affected area and marking the trigger point with a marker. After identifying the trigger point, your doctor will pinch it between their fingers and stabilize the tissue. Next, your doctor will insert a thin needle and syringe into your trigger point and repeatedly insert and retract the needle without removing it from the muscle. Your doctor will continue this motion until your muscle stops twitching and feels relaxed.

Will The Injection Be Painful?

You will likely experience pain when your doctor is trying to locate the trigger point before injection since trigger points are painful to the touch. Also, you may experience a stinging sensation when your doctor inserts the needle and increased pain when the needle hits your trigger point. Although it will be uncomfortable, the pain means the needle has found the right spot.

Are There Benefits To Trigger Point Injections?

Generally, the injections are safe and can relieve pain, especially if you have been living with trigger point pains that do not improve with conservative treatments. Also, after your injection, you will notice an improved range of motion and functionality depending on the treated muscle. However, you will avoid strenuous activity within the first few days while actively using your treated muscle. Pain relief will begin between the first and third day after treatment and last up to a month. You can ask your doctor for additional injections after one month if you still experience pain.

Trigger point injections are a safe way to treat trigger point pain, especially if the pain does not disappear with conservative treatment. These injections aim to provide relief within the shortest time possible to regain muscle functionality and enjoy a normal range of motion. While the results are temporary, you can always talk to your doctor about additional injections to help achieve long-term relief. Do not let the pain that is non-responsive to conservative treatment slow you down when you can benefit from trigger point injections.