Fire-Needle Acupuncture Treatment in Scapular Muscle Fasciitis

The scapula (shoulder blade) is a large triangular-shaped bone located in the upper back and includes two muscles on each side. The scapula is surrounded and supported by a complex system of muscles that work together to help in the arm movement. If some condition or injury causes these muscles to become imbalanced or weak, the position of the scapula can be altered at rest or in motion. A change in the scapular positioning or motion can make difficulties in the arm movement, especially when performing overhead activities and may cause shoulder weakness. Acupuncture treatment as part of the Traditional Chinese Medicine is most commonly used treatment for treating musculoskeletal disorders. In the treatment of scapular muscle fasciitis the fire-needle acupuncture gave the fastest and best results in our practice. The aim of the treatment is to break up the scar tissue and the adhesions which commonly form at the site, to relax the levator scapula muscle and restore local normal blood and energy flow. In the research are included 13 patients, 6 male and 7 female, on age from 24 to 70. All patients had scapular pain and on all was performed fire-needle acupuncture. Most common age groups are 50 - 60, most patients have pain on the right scapula and most of them—9 have done only one treatment. A long-term problem with the scapula muscle can be resolved with only one fire-needle acupuncture treatment.