Abstract
Myofascial pain is a major cause of musculoskeletal regional pain. Myofascial pain, which is a high-prevalence but eminently treatable condition, is almost universally underdiagnosed by physicians and undertreated by physical therapy modalities. Large numbers of patients can be left suffering in chronic pain for years. Dry needling, also referred to as Intramuscular Stimulation, is a method in the arsenal of pain management which has been known for almost 200 years in Western medicine, yet has been almost completely ignored. With the increase in research in this field over the past two decades, there are many high-quality studies that demonstrate dry needling to be an effective and safe method for the treatment of myofascial pain when diagnosed and treated by adequately-trained physicians or physical therapists. This article provides an overview of recent literature regarding the treatment of myofascial pain syndrome, evidence for the efficacy of dry needling as a central component of its management, and a glimpse at developments in recent imaging methods to aid in the treatment of these problems.