What are trigger points

Naturopathy: Trigger point therapy

In manual treatments such as osteopathy, manual therapy (MT), manual massage, fascial distortion model (FDM), physiotherapy and others, so-called trigger points are known. The word „trigger“ comes from the English and means „trigger“. The trigger points are externally noticeable points within the tissue, which can trigger pain locally and also with radiations in those affected.

Trigger points:
trigger points
Discovery of the trigger points
Treatment with trigger points

Discovery of the trigger points

The founders of the trigger points and their specific treatment are the US doctors Prof. Dr. med. Janet G. Travell (1901-1997) and Prof. David G. Simons (1922-2010). Prof. Dr. Travell was the White House doctor from 1960 to 1965 with US President Kennedy, who suffered from severe back pain, among other things. There is also an interesting autobiography of 1968 called „Office Hours: Day and Night“, unfortunately only published in English so far.

Treatment with trigger points

Travell and Simons published their years of experience in 1983 in two incredibly extensive books (Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: The Trigger Point Manual). There are also studies on trigger points and pain contexts in the human organism, connections to nutrition and metabolism, and treatment by therapists, by the patient himself, self-exercises, etc ...

It was not until 2005 that a study by the US researcher Jay Shah was published, in which he was able to explain a small part of the success of the trigger point treatment. He found that treating the trigger points normalized the pH (previously acidified) and reduced the presence of inflammatory and pain-promoting substances such as Substance P (P = Pain). Furthermore, according to recent studies, the trigger points should probably also be related to the sympathetic nervous system. It is also believed that the trigger points can shorten the muscle and fascia fibers, causing pain or movement restrictions such as neck tension, back pain, headache on the back of the head, shoulder pain, or stiffness in the back while moving.

The trigger points Nowadays, most therapists treat them with thumb pressure or dry needling. The treatments with local injections or ice spray could not prevail. (Thorsten Fischer, Naturopath Osteopathy)

Also read:
Fascia - a neglected structure
shoulder stinging
Stabbing in the neck