A modality of electrical twitch obtaining intramuscular stimulation pain
relief therapy utilizes a surface probe with a conductive tip to apply
surface electrical stimulation of relatively high voltage locally and
focally to muscle motor points and regions of adjacent motor end plate
zones. The surface-applied electrical stimulation through intact skin
readily facilitates the elicitation of forceful twitch responses from
muscle fibers associated with the stimulated motor points and motor end
plate zones, without requiring needle penetration into the patient's
flesh. Rapid movement between multiple treatment sites is possible
allowing treatment of a larger number of muscle motor point areas in
afflicted muscles and more muscles to be treated in a single treatment
session. The therapeutic effect of the twitches increases with the force
and number of the twitches. In addition, since physical insertion of the
needle electrode is totally unnecessary, patients experience little to no
pain during and after the procedure, and the risk of repetitive stress
injury to the therapist is reduced. Additionally, significantly less
skill is required to effectively elicit pain relieving twitch responses,
thus facilitating training of medical and para-medical personnel to
perform the procedure.