PHYSIOTHERAPY
Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS)
Intramuscular Stimulation, a type of dry needling, is a physio treatment used to treat chronic pain. It targets taut and tender muscle bands and supersensitive nerves near the spine. It was developed by Dr. Chan Gunn in the 1970’s during his time at the Workers Compensation Board. He developed this treatment after he saw that many patients weren’t progressing through conventional rehabilitation methods. Since it’s initial development, intramuscular stimulation has been repeatedly grounded in western medical science and has been supported by many experts including, trained specialists, researchers, and physicians.
Unlike the conventional methods, intramuscular stimulation is dependent on a specific, thorough, physical examination. Since chronic pain is often neurological it often doesn’t specifically show up on X-rays, MRI’s and CT Scans. Chronic Pain is often complex and therefore having a thorough initial assessment appointment can be important. However, if you aren’t sure that IMS treatments are right for you, seek out a general physio appointment, and we can create a custom physio plan that caters to your needs.
IMS treatments are used for chronic neuropathic pains that often occur when nerves malfunction following a trauma that you have experienced. This trauma will cause your nerves to become extremely sensitive potentially leading to muscle tightness and other issues. IMS treatment aims to relieve and release these muscles, which have been pressing on your irritated nerves. At Sitka Physio & Wellness, we have seen a remarkable success rate for our IMS patients. Many experience pain relief after just one treatment.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
What to Expect During an IMS Treatment Session
If it’s our first time meeting you, we would need to do a full physical examination to understand you and your symptoms. That means we typically will require a 60-minute assessment for first-time clients. During the assessment, we will be looking at you from head to toe to watch how you move and better understand your past injuries and traumas. Through our findings, if we determine that IMS is the right treatment option for you, we will then proceed with the first IMS treatment. At the end of our session, we will recap our findings and provide you with a thoughtfully developed IMS treatment plan.
If it’s a follow up from a previous assessment, usually 30 mins will do the trick. Here we will check in on your progress and chat about any physical changes to you or your lifestyle that may have been improved with the IMS treatment. We will adjust accordingly and continue to isolate taut and facilitated muscles with further treatment. Although we have had many clients see pain relief right away, it is common to require a series of treatments if you’ve been injured for a long time, or if you have multiple injury areas. Follow-up appointments can be scheduled quickly through our online system, or you may call in if you prefer.
Something to keep in mind for any IMS session is that muscle penetration with needles is often painless, but a cramping sensation can at times be felt due to the penetration of the shortened and supersensitive muscle. If you have experienced pain during IMS previously, it might mean that you have had to much stimulation for the amount of sensitivity in your nervous system. At Sitka Physio & Wellness, we approach this powerful technique with caution, so as to deliver enough stimulation to create change, without causing pain. To help you best prepare for the actual dry needling session, here is what you can expect post-treatment:
- An achy, fatigued sensation in those muscles that were needled.
- An instant increase in Range of Motion and strength in the affected area.
- An instant reduction in Neuropathic signs (reduced tenderness, reduced cool skin sensation, reduced goosebumps).
- Application of heat can be helpful immediately following the treatment and intermittently (as necessary) in the 24-36 hours post-treatment. This helps lessen muscle achiness and fatigue.
Most Common Injuries We Treat With IMS Treatments
Our physiotherapists have years of experience when it comes to Intramuscular Stimulation Treatments here in Vancouver. Some of the most common injuries and pain points we treat with IMS are:
- Whiplash
- Lower Back Pain
- Frozen Shoulder
- Tennis Elbow
- Achilles Tendinopathy
- Plantar Fasciopathy
- Degenerative Disc Disease
- Sciatica
So if you are in the Downtown Vancouver area and seeking muscle pain relief from one or more of the above conditions, please call us today to book an appointment. We are dedicated to helping you feel better, so you can go back to doing what you love. Please don’t hesitate to call if you have any question or concerns about IMS.