TBH Medical is a direct primary care (DPC) provider in Colorado Springs, CO. Aja Hardesty, MSN, FNP-BC, AGACNP-BC, is a double board-certified Nurse Practitioner in Colorado Springs with 15+ years of emergency room, urgent care, and primary care experience. With direct primary care, you skip the hassles of insurance and pay a low-cost monthly membership fee to have faster and more personalized access to essential primary care services – Same-Day or Next-Day Appointments – No Copays. No Deductibles. No Surprise Bills – Clear Upfront Pricing and Great Personalized Care!
Direct Primary Care is a great money-saving option if you don’t currently have medical coverage or wish to pair it with a high-deductible plan or a military plan. You can save even more money by paying for your DPC membership with HSA or FSA funds. And you’ll definitely enjoy the much shorter wait times to be seen!
We want your trigger point injections to be as simple and quick as possible for you.
Trigger point injections are used to relieve muscle pain. When the fascia fails to relax, the muscles form knots. These knots are known as trigger points and can irritate the surrounding nerves. The irritated nerves cause pain in different areas of the body.
When a trigger point injection is administered, the needle is inserted into the knot of contracted muscle. The needle itself helps to break up the muscle fibers. Then, the medication is delivered into the muscle to numb the area. The numbing helps reduce inflammation, and the muscle begins to heal.
Trigger point injections are used to treat many conditions, including:
Yes, trigger point injections are very safe. There are a few risks and side effects because the injection is localized. Because of this, it is unlikely that you will experience side effects throughout the body.
Before your procedure, your nurse practitioner will locate the trigger point by feeling for the knot. Once the area is cleaned, a small needle is inserted into the trigger point to administer the medication.
The entire procedure takes anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. During your appointment, multiple areas can be treated.
You may feel a small pinch when the needle goes into the skin, and then a bit more when it hits the trigger point. However, once the anesthetic is administered, you will begin to feel relief from pain at the injection site.
A local anesthetic like lidocaine or bupivacaine is administered into the trigger point. Sometimes, corticosteroid medications are also given by injection to relieve inflammation.
You will begin to feel relief within a few hours once the anesthetic takes effect. If a corticosteroid is administered as well, you will feel relief from inflammation within 2-3 days.
Everyone’s body is different. The effects can last anywhere from a few days to a few months. Some patients might need several injections to treat their condition, while others might only need one. It really depends on the underlying cause of the tension and the patient’s ability to follow up with other supportive treatments, such as physical therapy or stretching.
Depending on the severity of your case and how your body responds to the first injection, your treatment plan will vary. Some patients achieve permanent relief with a single procedure, while others with chronic issues may need treatment every few months.
Yes, the data show that these injections are very effective at treating most types of chronic pain. By breaking the pain cycle of muscle spasm, the procedure allows patients to participate more effectively in physical therapy or other long-term treatment plans.
The best candidates are those who have been experiencing muscle pain and have failed to find relief with other treatments like massage, heat, or oral pain medication. You should otherwise be healthy and have discrete muscle knots.
Providers do not typically recommend these injections to patients with:
Your nurse practitioner will carefully review your medical history to ensure you’re a good candidate.
We treat pregnant or breastfeeding women on a case-by-case basis. Your provider will consider the benefits of pain relief with any potential risks to the baby, and they often avoid the use of steroids during pregnancy.
The most common side effects are soreness, bruising, or bleeding at the injection site. These localized side effects are typically mild and will fully resolve on their own within a few days.
Although these risks are very low, possible risks include:
These risks are significantly lower when the procedure is performed by a well-trained nurse practitioner.
We typically recommend applying ice to the injection site if you have some soreness or swelling in the first 24 hours. If you have severe pain, redness, or fever, contact our office right away for evaluation.
At TBH Medical, we pride ourselves on transparency, so you’ll know exactly what you’ll pay for your procedure before we start treatment. We offer a published fee schedule for every in-office procedure for our DPC members.
As a DPC practice, we don’t bill your insurance provider or Medicare for any services.
Yes, the ability to know exactly what you’ll pay for your procedure and the transparent fee schedule for in-office procedures are two significant cost advantages to using a DPC practice.
At TBH Medical, our direct primary care practice model means we don’t have the inflated costs associated with insurance billing and overhead. For this reason, we can offer trigger point injections at a significantly lower rate than you would pay at a hospital or a specialist’s office.
We advise you to avoid using the affected muscle for the rest of the day to ensure the injection works. You may want to try some light stretching, but listen to your body and don’t force yourself to do anything painful.
Avoid heavy exercise, lifting, or manual labor for 24-48 hours. This will give the muscle time to heal and prevent the immediate re-irritation of the injected trigger point.
Most patients will be able to resume all their normal activities (driving, work, etc.) immediately upon leaving our office. You will just need to avoid activities that directly engage the muscle injected.
With direct primary care, you have longer visit times, giving your nurse practitioner the time needed to properly diagnose your pain. DPC practices also provide you with direct access to your provider at any time for follow-up questions.
Ensure that your provider is licensed and knowledgeable, and that they clearly explain the procedure. You want to feel comfortable with the cleanliness and professionalism of their office. They should also take the time to discuss your medical history and goals for managing your pain.
Trigger point injections are often used as part of a greater pain management treatment plan which may include:
The injection, when combined with other treatments, may provide the greatest degree of pain relief and functional improvement.
You may schedule an appointment by calling our office or sending us a secure message through your patient portal. As a direct primary care practice, we strive to make appointments easy to schedule.
Please bring a valid photo ID and a list of your current medications and supplements. If you have any recent imaging studies or office notes from other physicians regarding your pain condition, please bring those as well.