acupuncture and dry needling are both techniques that involve inserting thin needles into the body, but they have different principles, origins, and purposes.

acupuncture is part of the lineage of traditional chinese medicine; it is over 2000 years old.
  • focuses on establishing or restoring the free, unrestricted flow of Qi (energy) through meridians (energetic channels) in the body
    • many acupuncture protocols incorporate modern understandings of neurology, anesthesiology, and pain medicine; trigger point dry needling is within the repertoire of acupuncturists
    • acupuncture can treat ailments ranging from musculoskeletal pain to allergies, infertility, and constipation
  • acupuncture points are specific places at intersections of bones, ligaments, and tendons along these meridians to promote healing and relieve pain
    • points can be tonified (energy put in) or dispersed (energy let out) depending on the type of imbalance present
  • tongue and pulse diagnosis are usually involved, as well as consideration of nutrition, movement, and sleep – a holistic approach of the patient's overall health and well-being
  • acupuncture is performed by medical doctors trained specifically in acupuncture, as well as licensed acupuncturists. in many countries (like France), only medical doctors are permitted to practice acupuncture.
dry needling is a modern phenomenon, developed from Western medicine and physical therapy, focused on trigger points.
  • generally, needles are used to target myofascial trigger points (hyperirritable spots within the fascia and/or muscles that cause pain and dysfunction, and generally cause pain to radiate elsewhere when touched)
  • the goal is to relieve muscle pain, reduce tightness, and improve function by manually disrupting the abnormal architecture of the body caused by the trigger points
  • dry needling is usually performed by licensed physical therapists, chiropractors, or other healthcare providers trained in dry needling techniques

i am a medical acupuncturist, trained by Helms Medical Institute. i find acupuncture to be a more powerful modality of healing than dry needling for organic complaints - problems within the body that are not purely musculoskeletal. there are times i think dry needling is more helpful, and i use dry needling in my acupuncture practice for acute problems in athletes that clearly involve trigger points. however, i firmly believe that all injuries are created from more than a physical injury as a component.

for example, pain and tightness in the jaw is not simply because of overuse of your masseter muscle; it's because you hold stress there, which is related to the emotional and spiritual turmoil you are currently experiencing, and your tendency to deal with (or avoid) these things. acupuncture can effectively address the upstream issues that caused the problem at hand, and for that reason, it will almost always be my choice to use instead of, or alongside, dry needling.

this post was written with the help of AI.