Western Acupuncture - Falcon Health

Western Acupuncture Chiropractic (Dry Needling)

Traditional Chinese acupuncture treatment focuses on re-establishing proper energy circulation to assist the individual in achieving better health. Acupuncturists adopt a holistic approach to health in an attempt to identify and cure the underlying cause of illness. Acupuncture is a gentle and safe treatment with a long history.

What is Dry Needling?

Dry needling is a broad phrase used to distinguish “non-injection” needling from “injection needling,” which involves injecting a substance such as saline, local anaesthetic, or corticosteroid into the tissue or particular anatomical structures using a hypodermic syringe. Dry needling, on the other hand, uses a solid filament needle, similar to those used in acupuncture and focuses on the stimulation of certain responses in the target tissue to achieve its therapeutic impact.

Traditional acupuncturists have completed three years of training, and members of the Acupuncture Society are dedicated to professional development and standards.

According to a growing body of evidence-based clinical research, traditional acupuncture can effectively treat a wide range of common health problems. It can also be very effective for pain relief and the treatment of stress and anxiety. Acupuncture is popular among people because it makes them feel more rested and healthier.

The steady flow of energy through the body is necessary for good health, according to ancient Chinese philosophy. Anxiety, anger, sadness, poor diet, infection, trauma, and inherited factors can all cause energy to become blocked. When energy is blocked or out of balance, you can feel unwell or in pain.

Why is it Necessary to Use a Dry Needle?

While we perform a variety of Dry Needling techniques, Trigger Point Dry Needling (TDN) is perhaps the easiest to understand. Inflammation is created by damaged tissues when an injury develops as a result of repetitive use or acute trauma. Damaged tissues will also enter a protective tension condition or contracture to prevent further damage from being caused by the use of the injured tissue. Microcirculation is hampered by contracture and inflammation, which reduces both; the amount of oxygen-rich blood reaching the wound and the number of waste products leaving it.

The wounded site becomes hypoxic (low in oxygen), causing the body to create fibroblasts, which are the cells that produce fibrosis or scar tissue. This fibrosis and scarring forms around the muscles and tissues. It reduces their capacity to effectively function (lengthen/shorten), as well as causing nerve compression and discomfort (such as carpal tunnel syndrome). This can also lead to biomechanical abnormalities in movement and function. The cut muscle fibres also cause an inflammatory response in your body, which your body will respond to not just locally but systemically to relieve inflammation.

Effects of Dry Needling

Mechanical Effects

A malfunctioning motor endplate may be mechanically disrupted by dry needling.
Needling causes a local Twitch reaction (LTR)
The LTR causes a change in muscle fibre length as well as an inhibitory action on antagonistic muscles

Effects on the Neurophysiology

Dry needling procedures, according to Baldry (2001), stimulate A-nerve fibres (group III) for up to 72 hours after needling.
The sensory afferent is stimulated for a long time. The enkephalinergic inhibitory dorsal horn interneurons may be activated by A-fibers, implying that dry needling produces opioid-mediated pain suppression.
The activation of descending inhibitory mechanisms, which would impede unpleasant signals into the dorsal horn, is another proposed mechanism of dry needling.
The LTR might also make use of the tissue’s extra ACh, which was earlier causing the greater firing of localised fibres.

Effects of Chemicals

According to Shah and colleagues (2001), higher amounts of different substances such as Bradykinin, Substance P, and CGRP were found at sensitised motor endplates (regulator of Calcium and Phosphate balance). Following an LTR, these substances were immediately reduced.
CGRP increases ACh release from nerve terminals, resulting in more ACh receptors at the neuromuscular junction.
Needle insertion will create micro-trauma and micro bleeding (localised inflammation), prompting the introduction of PDGF to help in the healing process.

How Effective is Western Acupuncture?

Dry needling can help to physiologically boost healing or break vicious overload cycles.

However, if the disease has been present for a long time, direct mechanical treatment of the tissue may be required to break long-standing thicker fibrotic tissue or scarring. That is why we recommend Dry Needling as part of a therapy package in which other variables can be addressed simultaneously for a result that is more than the sum of its separate treatment components.

Book Your Assessment

With professional chiropractors guiding you every step of the way, special exercises, and an excellent mechanism for follow-ups, Falcon Health is the best place you can be that yields successful results. Book an appointment today!

Is chiropractic care regulated in the UK?
Yes, chiropractic care is regulated in the UK. Chiropractors must be registered with the General Chiropractic Council (GCC) and adhere to strict professional standards.