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Dry Needling by a Physical Therapist: What You Should Know. Dry needling is a technique physical therapists use (where allowed by state law) for the treatment of pain and movement impairments. The technique uses a âdryâ needle, one without medication or injection, inserted through the skin into areas of the muscle.
The origin of the term âdry needlingâ is attributed to Janet G. Travell, M.D. In her book, 'Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: Trigger Point Manual', Dr. Travell uses the term dry needling to differentiate between two hypodermic needle techniques when performing trigger point therapy.roper dry needling of a myofascial trigger point will elicit a local twitch response (LTR), which is an involuntary spinal cord reflex in which the muscle fibers in the taut band of muscle contract. The LTR indicates the proper placement of the needle in a trigger point.