Is there a magic wand that can close a diastasis recti?
Neuromodulation for diastasis rectus abdominis (DRA)
What if I said that I could wave a magic wand and make your diastasis rectus abdominis (DRA) close? Well, I can’t quite do that…but almost.
WHAT is a Diastasis Rectus Abdominis?
Diastasis Recti (DR), also called Diastatis Rectus Abdominis (DRA), is when the abdominal muscles, often called the six-pack muscles, separate. It usually happens during pregnancy to take pressure off of your pelvic floor and give your internal organs room so they don’t get compressed during pregnancy. It can also happen after abdominal surgeries or if there’s been a lot of weight gain around the abdomen, thus men and women who have not had children can have one too. Having a DRA itself is not a problem. It is only a problem when there are other symptoms associated with it, such as leaking urine (pee), low back pain, difficulty controlling gas, abdominal pain and discomfort, if you feel weakness in your core with daily activities, and/or if you do not like how it looks visually.
What helps get rid of a DRA?
There are several things that have been shown to help a DRA close (1). The most important and most effective way is by doing certain exercises. However, there are many people who do all the exercises and they still have a DRA.
Recent research has looked at the benefits of other types of treatment. One study looked at the benefit of using electrical stimulation with pads on the abdominal muscles to help get them to fire, which helps the DRA close particularly when combined with exercise (2).
Another study I read looked at the benefits of using acupuncture to close a DRA (3). While we use similar needles to acupuncturists, dry needling is NOT acupuncture. This study showed where and how deeply they inserted the needles when doing acupuncture for a DRA (3). Again, when paired with exercise, this study showed that the acupuncture helped the DRA close (3).
As doctors of physical therapy, when we do dry needling on the abdominal muscles we insert the needle deeper than the acupuncture study looked at. This allows us to get to a specific muscle to help it contract when we hook it up to electrical stimulation. (See the picture below).
Dry needling with electrical stimulation in the form of neuromodulation to help close a DRA. The depth of the needles is only to the level of the abdominal muscles.
Why does Neuromodulation matter?
We’ve used dry needling with electrical stimulation at Insight for years, so how is neuromodulation different? Your nerves control your muscle function. With neuromodulation we focus on getting as close to the nerves as possible and then follow the paths they take through the body. Dry needling with electrical stimulation focuses on the individual muscles. Stimulation to the muscle alone is sort of like changing a light bulb rather than working on the light switch (or nerve) that controls the light which is what we focus on with neuromodulation.
Receiving treatment from a pelvic floor PT who is certified in dry needling with neuromodulation means that you get to benefit from being treated by someone who has an advanced understanding of the muscles and nerves in this area of the body. It’s our main focus.
How Neuromodulation helps close a DRA (...it’s the magic wand)
When we hook the abdominal needles up to electrical stimulation, our goal is to help your abdominal wall function well again which will also help close the DRA.
While there have not been studies focusing on what neuromodulation can do for DRA specifically, what we do know from looking at both of the studies I mentioned earlier is that dry needling with electrical stimulation can be beneficial to helping close a DRA. In fact, we have been very impressed with the results.
Before treatment we measure our clients DRA, then we insert the needles into both sides of the rectus abdominis (6 pack muscle) as well as trace the nerve that runs through these muscles. Then we hook the needles up to electrical stimulation (neuromodulation). After treatment we measure the gap and every time we are so impressed with the immediate decrease. It’s basically a magic wand. Exercises are an important part of this magic fix though. The at-home exercises we’ve assigned have been so beneficial in maintaining the progress our clients are experiencing.
We have found that while the neuromodulation helps decrease the DRA it also helps decrease our clients symptoms such as issues with peeing, passing gas on accident, low back or abdominal pain, and feeling weak in their core. Reach out to us with any questions you might have about the use of neuromodulation for diastasis recti.
