Myofascial Pain Syndrome

Do you experience unexplained aches and pains that seem to spread like wildfires and especially so around the areas of an injury? Well you are not alone, as this type of pain is all too common and many times a contributing component of neck, back and hip pain.

Simply put trigger points or muscle knots are irritable spots, patches or nodules within the muscle fibers.  These pain spots can be fierce in their intensity and often radiate to broader areas. 

This radiation of pain seems to occur when the trigger points grow in size, causing a tug or pull on the surrounding ligaments and tendons. subsequently creating pain to be felt deep within a joint where there are no muscles. This is called referred pain.

Now while there can be many possible causes of unexplained aches and pains, trigger points are often a contributing factor and perhaps your missing link in the pain puzzle. The trigger point topic is complicated, quite often neglected amongst healthcare professionals and only until recently has it begun to gain any real traction amongst physicians.

Typically, physicians have focused their attention upon the bones, joints and nerves as the origin for pain, while leaving muscle pain and dysfunction to fend for themselves. 

This can be extremely frustrating for those experiencing chronic muscle pain, as physicians, chiropractors and even massage therapists are quite often not the appropriate “guru” when it comes to treating muscle pain. Unfortunately, muscle tissue just hasn’t received the attention it truly deserves, allowing many to fall through the cracks of misdiagnosis.

Trigger point therapy is a “niche" so to speak and one that requires specific understanding, skill, passion and training. In the right hands, one can find tremendous relief but it’s not easy to find. Physiotherapists are often referred patients for this very reason or it's the patient themself who seeks out a therapist as a last ditch resort.

All too often, patients arrive frustrated and discouraged with a long list of concerns they can’t seem to find the answers for. A very sad but true reality and similarly the case for patients suffering from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome.

Unfortunately, many conditions and symptoms that patients experience are quite complicated and at times even controversial. It takes a special therapeutic approach for a clinician to properly diagnose and treat the phenomena of unexplained pain that is not the direct result of an injury or surgery.

Here at Actify Physiotherapy we take pride in what we do and truly take the time to listen to our patients and their concerns!  It starts by listening to each individual patient, identifying the areas of concern and collaborating together to develop a treatment plan customized for each individual.  No two people are alike, and no two treatments are the same!

If you are interested in learning more about trigger points and myofascial pain, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us in the link at the bottom of the page!

Be sure to consult with your primary care physician or other medical professionals in regards to your medical concerns. This text cannot and should not replace advice from the patient's healthcare professionals. Any person who experiences symptoms or feels that something may be wrong should seek individual professional help for evaluation and/or treatment. This post is for informative purposes only.