Trigger Point Inection

What are trigger point injections?

A trigger point injection can help soothe myofascial pain, especially in your neck, shoulder, arms, legs, and lower back.

Trigger points are painful “knots” in your muscles that can be very sensitive to touch/pressure. They may form after acute trauma or by repetitive micro-trauma, leading to stress on muscle fibers. It causes the muscle fibers to be stuck in a contracted state. Sometimes you can feel these knots when you rub your muscle.

Trigger point injections commonly involve injections of local anaesthetic with or without corticosteroid, botulinum toxin, or without any injection substance (dry needling).

What are trigger point injections used for?

Trigger points can develop in any muscle, but the most common muscle groups that are treated with trigger point injections include:

• Masseter (a muscle in your jaw).
• Levator scapulae (a muscle on the sides of your neck).
• Gluteus medius (a muscle in your hip).
• Quadratus lumborum (a deep muscle in your low back).
• Trapezius (the muscle extending over the back of your neck and shoulders).
• Sternocleidomastoid (a muscle in the front of your neck).
• Temporalis (a muscle on the sides of your head).

Trigger points can cause certain types of pain or issues. For example, trigger points affecting your trapezius muscle may cause tension headaches. A trigger point affecting your piriformis muscle (a muscle in your buttocks) can cause piriformis syndrome — when the piriformis muscle presses on your sciatic nerve. It causes pain or numbness in your buttock and down the back of your leg.

What happens During a Trigger Point Injection?

A small needle is inserted into the patient’s trigger point. The injection contains a local anaesthetic or saline and may include a corticosteroid. With the injection, the trigger point is made inactive and the pain is alleviated. Often, a brief course of treatment will result in sustained relief. Injections are given in a doctor’s office and usually take just a few minutes. Several sites may be injected in one visit. If a patient has an allergy to a certain drug, a dry-needle technique (involving no medications) can be used.

What are the benefits of trigger point injections?

Trigger point injections are generally safe and can provide pain relief to people who have been experiencing pain associated with trigger points and have not found relief using more conservative treatments, like over-the-counter pain medication or physical therapy.

Trigger point injections can also provide significant improvement in range of motion and overall muscle functionality, depending on which muscle is affected.

Post Recovery after trigger point injection

After a trigger point injection treatment, patients can use the muscle that was treated but is asked to refrain from vigorous activity for a few days. Most patients will experience pain relief starting between 24 and 72 hours after the time of injection. Pain relief can last about one month. Recurring injections may be needed to achieve long-term pain relief. If the injections consist of anaesthetic only, patients can receive injections more frequently than if they also contain steroid medication. This is because steroids increase the risk of tissue damage.