Do Trigger Points Release on Their Own? An Expert's Perspective

Trigger points are small, narrow areas in the tight band of muscle fibers and fascia that restrict blood flow to the area and cause pain. They don't go away on their own, and if left untreated, can worsen and cause the pain to return. To get rid of them, you need to consult a massage therapist. Pain from a trigger point can also be felt in a different area of the body, which is called referred pain.

Trigger point injections are one of the most effective treatments for deactivating trigger points and provide almost immediate relief. Dry needling on trigger points is also recommended for relieving trigger points. During a dry needling visit, a provider inserts a fine needle through the skin until it reaches the trigger points. You can also learn to massage your own trigger points (muscle knots).

Professional help can be good and sometimes essential, but it can also be profitable to learn how to avoid trigger points. Trigger point massage is an experimental treatment for pain, but it's worth trying anyway. The first rule of trigger point massage is that any good massage is probably better than bad trigger point therapy. Weakness, minor tears, muscle tension, dehydration, and even a poor diet can cause trigger points to form.

Trigger points usually form in patterns all over the body, usually in places where blood circulation is already low. Studies show that both the TPI and dry needling are as effective as the other at myofascial trigger points. If you've suffered a traumatic muscle injury (even when lifting a box that was too heavy), schedule an appointment with a massage therapist who knows trigger point massage techniques to start relieving your pain. Quintner, Cohen and Bove believe that the most popular theory about the nature of trigger points (muscle tissue injuries) is “flawed both in reasoning and in science, and that treatment based on that idea achieves results “indistinguishable” from the placebo effect.

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