Chronic pain
Chronic pain is defined as ‘pain that carries on for longer than 12 weeks despite medication or treatment’
The majority of chronic pain seen in our clinic, is caused by myofascial pain syndrome (MPS). In a nutshell, small areas of muscle fibres develop a dysfunction which causes significant amounts of pain. This pain radiates outwards and over time a large area of the body can be consumed with debilitating pain. This pain can also ‘refer’, in other words a problem in one part of the body is felt in another.
There are other causes of pain and often there are a combination of factors presenting. We will always try to seek out the root cause(s) of the problem whether it is a sprain/strain, stress or MPS, rather than just treating symptoms.
The root cause of MPS is usually the connection between a motor nerve and a muscle fibre. This area (the motor end plate) goes awry and due to an excess of ‘neurotransmitter chemicals’, causes the muscle to remain permanently contracted. This causes what most people know as a knot, but these have a scientific name of myofascial trigger point (Mtrp). These Mtrps not only cause pain but they also affect local circulation meaning that your body tissues will have a reduced supply of oxygen and nutrients and other useful factors carried in the bloodstream. Also, lymphatic drainage is compromised causing a build up of ‘metabolites’ such as lactic acid.
The good news is that our methods and therapeutic approach can cause these dysfunctional areas to return to normal or as close as is possible!
The NICE guidelines for chronic pain
In April 2021 NICE (National Institute for Heath and Care Excellence), made some changes to their guidance for chronic pain. These changes include …
Pain killer medication such as NSAIDs (typically ibuprofen) , paracetamol and opioids were removed as recommendations due to no/limited evidence on the effectiveness
Acupuncture was recommended as a treatment for chronic primary pain since ‘Many studies showed that acupuncture reduced pain and improved quality of life …’
This was hardly news to us since it reflects the picture seen in clinic by us hundreds of times!