stiff neck and shoulders for over 5 years

main symptoms

stiffness in the left side of the neck, which started 3 years ago.
stiffness in the shoulders has been present for about 5 years.
she does not get headaches often, but sometimes feels discomfort near the left temporal area. this symptom has been worsening for about a year.
her jaw joint is also in a bad condition, and she feels that it is getting worse little by little.
she has been going to an osteopathy clinic for about five years. she has also been seeing a chiropractor for the past 2 years.
however, her neck was not getting better, so she came to our clinic for acupuncture treatment.

visual observation and palpation

swelling of the neck and shoulders was observed.
there was also swelling on her face.
palpation showed hypertension in the muscles of the posterior neck and side of the neck, including the cervical semispinalis and levator scapulae muscles.

treatment

acupuncture was performed on the semispinalis and levator scapulae muscles.

from the 1st to the 3rd treatment, there was not much change, but from the 5th treatment, there was a marked improvement in stiffness symptoms.
by the 10th treatment, the symptoms had almost disappeared.
the pain worsened after 3 months of treatment but improved after 2 or 3 treatments.

Summary

persistent symptoms

acupuncture, as a direct physical therapy, is very good at treating symptoms that have been present for a long time.
symptoms that persist for a long time are those caused by trigger points in deep muscles.
deep muscle trigger points can also cause a variety of autonomic symptoms.
especially trigger point forming in the neck muscles can cause many complaints.
i highly recommend early and direct acupuncture treatment before the stiffness worsens, as it is often difficult to treat with Western medical diagnosis.
stiffness cannot be completely cured by external stimulation.
stiffness will not be cured without a direct approach to the area.

for patients with symptoms that have persisted for years, treatment of the deeper muscles will lead to early recovery and early improvement.

Case Reports