WHAT IS TAUT BAND THERAPY?
For the majority of muscular or connective tissue problems, active sources of pain
can be identified as trigger points or sore attachment points. These painful areas
are not just randomly scattered throughout a muscle. Usually, they are all located
within a definite set of tense muscle fibers, originally identified as taut bands
by Janet Travell. To the patient, this entire “streak” of tension may feel extra
sensitive or painful. To the therapist, taut bands feel denser and more resistant
to pressure than adjacent sets of parallel fibers. The therapist must identify the
entire band, from its distal attachment to the proximal one, and also locate the
trigger points and sore attachment points within the band.
Taut Band Therapy was developed by Stewart Walker as an effective use of therapeutic
bodywork for the reduction of muscular – skeletal pain. Travell demonstrated that
pain reduction is facilitated by elongating the tight muscle fibers within these
bands. Most of the techniques in this therapy are designed to serve the purpose
of lengthening. Normalizing the responses in the taut bands is essential for the
restoration of function to the muscle as a whole. This methodology is distinguished
by the stationary or slow moving, deliberate use of pressure. Taut Band Therapy
is very different from methods designed primarily for relaxation and circulatory
stimulation. The goals of this therapy are:
- to reduce pain,
- to reduce neural inhibition generated by the trigger point; and,
- to restore the muscle’s full functional strength
