If you are experiencing muscle pain, it can develop for a variety of reasons. While many types of muscle pain can go away after a couple of days of rest, some people aren’t as lucky. The persistent or chronic jaw pain or headache pain may require further medical treatment. Luckily, there is a solution for jaw pain and headache relief: trigger point injections.
What are trigger point injections?
A trigger point injection is used to help soothe muscle pain and can be used to treat tension headaches and myofascial pain, among other complaints. To get more specific, trigger points are painful knots in your muscles that form when a muscle can’t relax. In fact, you may be able to feel these knots when you rub your muscle.
By injecting small amounts of anesthetic and steroid into the trigger point, it can help to alleviate the pain. You will either sit down or lie down for the procedure. To locate the area where you have pain, your doctor will press down on the muscle. They will then insert a small needle into the area and inject the anesthetic and steroid mixture. You can have several trigger points injected in one sitting, depending on the treatment. This will take only a few minutes, so you won’t have to sit for long.
After the injection
Once the trigger point injection is complete, you can actively use your muscle. However, it is important to note that you should avoid strenuous activity for the first few days. This is to ensure you do not reinjure the area or cause a flare up.
Trigger point injections might be appropriate for you if your pain has not improved with other treatment such as pain medication or physical therapy. Contact us at AZ Sleep & TMJ Solutions to learn more about trigger point injections and to find out if you area a candidate for this procedure.