Dry Needling: The Most Controversial (And The Most Effective) Therapy For Your Neck, Jaw & Back Pain

Basically, dry needling focuses on myofascial trigger points, or hypersensitive bands of muscle that cause limited range of motion and can refer pain to other areas of the body. In other words: trigger points are those hard, painful knots in your neck and back that seem to linger, causing stiffness and pain. The exact mechanism by which dry needling works is still unknown. The best theory at the moment is that the elimination of trigger points removes peripheral sensitization1, which occurs when your pain threshold is reduced in a particular area and the nerves become hyper-responsive as a result.

There is some research on dry needling, and it does seem to be effective at treating myofascial trigger points, especially when it's ultrasound guided. In one study, four sessions of dry needling were given to people with chronic neck pain over a period of two weeks. Dry needling was shown to reduce pain intensity, sensitivity to pain, and perceived neck disability while increasing range of motion and muscle strength in the short and long term.

Numerous other studies have confirmed its effectiveness at treating acute and chronic pain and shown it to be a relatively simple, noninvasive, and low-risk method (assuming it's done correctly and by someone well-trained). Knowing this, it's hard to understand why dry needling isn't very well-known.

So now on to the most important question on your mind: How many times do you have to go before you see significant results? This depends on the type of pain you're experiencing and what type of dry needling you get. According to Lev Kalika, D.C., a chiropractic doctor who frequently performs dry needling on his patients—in fact, he trained with Karel Lewit, M.D., DSC, who was one of the first doctors to start doing dry needling on patients—“The average dry needling procedures statistically performed in the U.S. are around 12 to 15 sessions. With UGDN (Ultrasound Guided Dry Needling) this number goes down to two to three sessions. If effective, dry needling has immediate effect on pain, but the duration of the effect depends on the factors."

Depending on the type of health care provider you ask, dry needling can be a contentious topic. And that is, in part, because of safety concerns surrounding it. So is dry needling dangerous? It can be, especially if it's done by someone who isn't trained properly. According to Dr. Singh, "There are case reports demonstrating complications such as spinal epidural hematoma3, pneumothorax4 (punctured lung), deep infection5, and radial nerve injury,6 among others." If you're interested in dry needling, it's important to understand the risks and weigh the pros and cons as you would with any other type of intervention, like medication or dietary changes. And even more importantly, make sure you find someone who is experienced in the technique.

For anyone suffering from muscle pain—in the neck, shoulders, back, or even the jaw—dry needling might be something to consider, especially if other therapies haven't done the trick. Dry needling is usually part of a larger action plan that includes stretching and muscle strengthening exercises to prevent those stubborn trigger points from returning. Treatments can be pricey and are not always covered by insurance, but dry needling is becoming increasingly popular as an effective, drug-free approach to relieving muscle pain that is definitely worth a second look.

So why, then, is it so controversial? Despite cost and safety concerns from going to a practitioner that isn't properly trained, dry needling is a symptom of the battle between conventional and alternative medicine techniques. Dr. Kalika had some important final thoughts on the controversy surrounding dry needling: "I think there are two reasons, 1) We cannot yet find the exact mechanism of action. 2) Dry needling is a time-consuming and not an easily learned skill. There is big resistance from the medical community because doctors and specialists look for quick, invasive, and more profitable solutions. There is also pushback on this procedure because no medicine is injected during the procedure, so there is no gain to the pharmaceutical industry either."