Vitamins and minerals are injected directly into the muscle. Injections are administered either in the deltoid muscle of the arm or the gluteal muscles. By using this method you can bypass absorption and ensure that the vitamins and minerals go directly into the surrounding tissue. The injections are used as a test for deficiency as well as a treatment. Trigger Point Injection Therapy Trigger Point Injection (TPI) therapy is a procedure designed to relieve pain in areas of muscle that contain knots. Knots, classified as trigger points are discrete, hyperirritable spots (feel like a rope) located in a tight band of muscle. These points can often be felt under the skin and they produce pain locally. This irritates the nerves around them and in a referred pattern to other areas of the body. Acute trauma or repetitive stress on muscle fibers can lead to the formation of trigger points. Persistent pain can occur in postural muscles in the neck, shoulders and pelvis. Palpation over a trigger point will also elicit pain directly over the area or the radiation of pain in the body.
Many disorders can result following trigger point formation including tension headaches, tinnitus, jaw pain, low back pain, arm pain, shoulder pain, leg pain and decreased range of motion. Trigger Point Injection is used to treat many muscle groups throughout the body It has been used successfully to treat fibromyalgia and myofascial pain syndrome (chronic pain involving tissue that surrounds the muscle). A needle is inserted directly into the trigger point injecting pain alleviating solutions such as lidocaine or procaine. These restore function to the autonomic nervous system and allow the muscle to relax. By relaxing the spasming muscle, blood flow to the area is improved and the trigger point is inactivated. Solutions including homeopathics and B vitamins may also be used for injection. TPI has a variety of benefits including immediate and long-lasting relief of pain, reduced referred pain and minimized fatigue and stiffness. Several sites may be injected in one visit providing sustained relief.
Originally developed in Germany to provide instant and long-lasting resolution of chronic pain and illness. The therapy is based on the theory that trauma can produce disturbances in the electrochemical function of tissues. Areas of trauma, for example scar tissue, have different membrane charges then normal body cells. In other words, your cells are similar to a battery. If the charge on the battery changes, abnormal minerals and toxic substances can accumulate as the pumps in the wall of the cell stop working. Consequently, the cell can no longer heal itself. In neural therapy, a local anesthetic, such as procaine, is injected to restore the functioning of the pumps and normal membrane potential (correct the charge on the battery). By re-establishing the appropriate electrical condition of the cell, the disturbed function is neutralized allowing you to return to health. Solutions including homeopathics and B vitamins may also be used for injection. Similar to TPI, the site being treated can affect other areas in the body.
The last advantage of this Intramuscular (IM) injection site is it can be administered from numerous patient positions such as the supine, lateral (left or right), and on the abdomen. Don't forget to tell the patient to relax the muscles prior to injection, as this can reduce the chances of bruising and more importantly, reduce pain or discomfort. The only major knocks against this IM injection site is that if hypersensitivity were to take place a tourniquet would not be possible to apply to delay absorption. Of course the other disadvantage to this site would be a healthcare professional's unfamiliarity with the ventrogluteal injection site. Considerations for the ventrogluteal injection (to the patient a butt injection?)First things first, to a patient this location could be considered a private area as the pants need to come down a bit to be able to locate the IM injection properly. The procedure should be explained so that the patient understands what is going to happen so they are not startled or if an alternate location needs to be considered.
Once past that point remember that the volume of drug that can go the ventrogluteal route is 1.0 - 4.0 ml for well developed muscles, but a child under 2 years old should receive no more than 1 ml in the ventrogluteal site. The gauge of needle can be 21-25, with a length of 1.5 inches for the average sized adult; the needle would be much shorter for skinny individuals and children. Larger patients may require a needle that is larger than 1.5 inches to make sure the needle makes it through the adipose tissue (fat). Be sure that the angle of all ventrogluteal injections is 90 degrees. How NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT to give a ventrogluteal injection One of the ways to find Landmarks for a Ventrogluteal injection Locating the site for a ventrogluteal IM injectionFirst you must determine which hand you will use to locate the IM injection site by the position the patient is in, for example if the patient is on their right side you would use your right hand to find the landmarks. So using the example, a person is lying on their right side so you would take your right hand and place it on their greater trochanter, depending on the length of your fingers you would then place your index finger on the anterior superior iliac spine or point your finger in that direction with the thumb pointed at the groin, all other fingers should be pointed at the patient's head.