…according to Suthee Siriwechdaruk, 49.
Dry needling and Chinese acupuncture are completely different
Dry needling is practiced to cure muscle pain caused by tension and stiffness (aka myofascial pain syndrome). Chinese acupuncture, however, is an alternative medicine that focuses on body meridians (channels that, according to traditional Chinese medicine, transport energy to parts of your body). It has been widely claimed to possibly heal many illnesses—anything from insomnia to fertility.
Despite a long-running history,it wasn’t until the past decade that dry needling was dramatically developed
In the past, doctors used trigger- point injections to cure myofascial pain syndrome. Studies showed that, regardless of the type of medicine, the muscle pain was cured anyway. They learned that it wasn’t the medicine but the fact that the muscle was injected by a tiny needle. That was when dry needling therapy began to rise.
The hardest thing is to diagnose the cause of the pain
Muscle pain can be caused by many—or multiple—factors such as weak muscles, overused muscles and muscle stress. Only an accurate diagnosis would bring about effective treatments.
Dry needling is safe and effective, but you should always get treatment from a certified practitioner
Needles used for the treatment are really, really thin, with the diameter ranging from 0.02 to 0.05 millimeters, yet it may still cause some bleeding underneath the skin or bruising. To become a dry needling practitioner, you need to be either a certified anesthesiologist majoring in pain specializations or a rehabilitation doctor with a three-year training diploma. Furthermore, according to Thai law, only certified doctors and nurses are permitted to insert anything into a patient’s body.
Suthee is a rehabilitation medical doctor at Bumrungrad Hospital.
